Es geht los, der erste Premier Cru!

Mit 2025 CHATEAU LAFITE ROTHSCHILD kommt der erste Premier Cru des Jahrganges 2025 auf den Markt und mit 466,00 Euro liegt der Preis 100,00 Euro unter dem 2023er Preis. Wir hatten zweimal Gelegenheit gemeinsam mit ERIC KOHLER, dem technischen Direktor und SASKIA DE ROTHSCHILD das 2025er Portfolio zu verkosten und können nur sagen: Was für ein genialer LAFITE – 4 Mal 100 Punkte liebe Weinfreunde. Lediglich 12,5% Alkohol, das gab es im Jahrgang 2020 das letzte Mal, wobei es zu erwähnen gilt, dass LAFITE tendenziell grundsätzlich niedriger im Alkohol ist. ERIC KOHLER vergleicht 2025 deshalb auch mit dem Jahrgang 2020, allerdings meinte er, dass die Tannine im Jahrgang 2025 weicher sind, der Wein aromatischer und früher trinkbar.

Was macht diesen 2025 CHATEAU LAFITE ROTHSCHILD so speziell? Die Lese startete mit dem 02. September zwar sehr früh, für den Jahrgang aber nicht ungewöhnlich früh. Die Erträge liegen ebenso im Jahrgangsrahmen. Der Regen Ende August verhalf diesem Wein zu dieser Besonderheit, bestehend aus einerseits Druck, Frucht, Süße und enormer Dichte, andererseits aber dieser ungemeinen Frische und Energie, dieser Mineralik und Salzigkeit. In sich ein Paradoxon, in dieser Kombination aber genial. Insofern unser Rat: Kaufen Sie sich etwas von diesem grandiosen Premier Cru, Sie werden es nicht bereuen! Wenn Sie Lafite Liebhaber sind, dann ist 2025 Ihr Jahrgang.

98-100 THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Cuban cigars, cedar, crème de cassis, blackberries, flowers, espresso, and forest leaves set the wine's perfume. Refined, elegant, precise, and pure, the fruit tastes as if it were just pulled from the vines. Expressive, vibrant, long, and packed with blackberries, currants, Indian spices, tobacco, and marine influences, the seamless, graceful finish does not want to quit, passing the 60-second mark with ease. One of the most important parts of the growing season took place starting in June and running through July 10. Climatically, it was hot and dry. The midsummer rains following that dry period provided much-needed nourishment, aiding ripeness and contributing to the style and success of the vintage. The wine is a blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot. 12.5% ABV. Picking took place September 2 - September 20. Yields were low at 27 hectoliters per hectare. 48% of the harvest was placed into the Grand Vin. Drink from 2032 - 2075."

98-100 NEAL MARTIN: "The 2025 Lafite-Rothschild was cropped at 27 hl/ha between September 2 and 20. Eric Kohler mentioned that, unlike 2022, it underwent a longer maceration than usual because, after 24 days, he felt the wine was at ease with itself and there was no excess. That comes through completely on the deliriously intoxicating nose, replete with nuanced blackberry, bilberry and estuarine scents, all beautifully defined and seamlessly integrated with the 90% new oak that is made from Lafite’s own cooper. The palate is medium-bodied with finely chiselled tannins. It is blessed with extraordinary harmony and it is so well balanced that you almost overlook the weight and minéralité towards the finish. Just a dab of graphite lingers on the aftertaste. This is a very succinct and refined Lafite-Rothschild that I suspect will drink earlier than the 2022, yet will age with equal grace in bottle. I admit that, upon returning to my car, it was only then that I realised what a brilliant wine the 2025 Lafite-Rothschild is destined to become."

98-100 LISA LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2025 Lafite Rothschild waltzes out of the glass with flamboyant notes of warm cassis, fresh black plums, and iris, giving way to nuances of star anise, fertile loam, and underbrush, with a touch of black truffles. The light-bodied palate offers an exhilarating texture of silky yet firm tannins—uniquely Lafite—plus incredible tension with a level of fruit and phenolic ripeness that is seemingly impossible at this low level of alcohol. The finish is long with lingering sparkles of mineral and floral notes. The blend is 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot. 16% press wine was used. It has a pH of 3.65 and the alcohol is 12.4%."

99-100 JAMES SUCKLING: "Intense aromas of sweet tobacco, dark cedar, cigar humidor, mushroom, roses, and wet earth follow through to a medium to full body with firm, velvety tannins and a driven, intense finish. Very structured with bones. Reminds me of Lafite from the 1980s. Unique for the vintage. 12.5% alcohol. A blend of 94% cabernet sauvignon, 5% merlot and 1% petit verdot."