Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte - Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte blanc 2021

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "98– 100. Barrel Sample. Fresh, crisp but with intensity and ripe texture, this wine is the star of the white wines this vintage. It is tight, with minerality and acidity. Pink grapefruit, and a dynamic texture reveal its concentration. It will be a great wine from a great white wine vintage."

JAMES SUCKLING: "This has so much depth and power, with complex notes of flint, oyster shell, white pepper, dried mango, lemon, papaya, apricot stone and chalk. Medium-to full-bodied. Bright, yet creamy. It’s so long and concentrated. Wait and see. 90% sauvignon blanc, 5% semillon, 5% sauvignon gris. From organically grown grapes."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "2021 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc – Pessac-Léognan – Green apples, pineapple, flowers, vanilla, lemon chiffon, and orange blossoms crowd into the nose. Energetic, crisp, fresh, clean, and pure with a fabulous pop in the mouth from all the layers of sweet, but vibrant fruits. The touch of peppery spice in the finish adds another dimension. The wine was produced from a blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sauvignon Gris, and 5% Semillon. 13.5% ABV. Drink from 2023-2035."

WEINWISSER: "90 % Sauvignon Blanc, 5 % Sémillon, 5 % Sauvignon Gris. Verspieltes Bouquet, Pampelmuse, Limonenessenz und weiße Blüten. Am dichten Gaumen mit ungeheurer Eleganz, seidiger Textur, balancierter Rasse, mehr Druck, mittlerem Körper. Symbiose aus Kraft und Fülle im Mittelteil sowie Eleganz im spannungsvollen Finale, dafür war die späte Lese verantwortlich. Im katapultartigen Finale Agrumen, Pomelo und edle weiße Mineralik und salziges Extrakt. Ganz großes weißes SHL-Kino, teilt sich mit Haut- Brion Blanc und Pavillon Blanc dieses Jahr den Spitzenplatz."

DECANTER: "Toasted oak, lanolin, honeyed caramel, lemon zest and red apple peel on both the nose and palate. This has an unctuosity, a richness to the texture giving beautiful honeyed lemon touches with Semillon fatness and intensity from the Sauvignon. It’s sleeping a little right now, feels as if it’s calm and quiet, not yet ready to show the world what it’s about but you do get a precision and detail along the edges, a real sculpting of elements. I love the presentation, such a success for the vintage, excellent winemaking on show. It's the soft vibration you get as the flavours travel from start to finish that is so promising - a lot of life and immense enjoyment to come from this."

JEB DUNNUCK: "The Grand Vin 2021 Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc checks in as the usual blend of 90% Sauvignon and 5% each of Semillon and Sauvignon Gris. It has a kiss of green in its gold hue as well as brilliant aromatics of melon, stone fruits, minty herbs, chalky mineral, and flowers. Complex, nuanced, and medium to full-bodied, with both richness and elegance, it's a brilliant white in the making."

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "The 2021 Smith Haut Lafitte blanc is composed of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Semillon, and 5% Sauvignon Gris, aging in 50% new oak. A little closed to begin, it opens out to reveal notes of fresh pineapple, green mango, and lime cordial with wafts of lemon grass, sea spray, and coriander seed. The palate is medium-bodied with super-intense, tight-knit citrus and tropical fruit layers, framed by a satiny texture and electric backbone, finishing very long and energetic."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "At this early stage, the 2021 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc appears set to number among the best white wines this estate has produced to date. Wafting from the glass with aromas of crisp orchard fruit, nectarine, grapefruit, pastry cream and smoke, it's medium to full-bodied, fleshy and layered, with a concentrated core of fruit, racy acids and a taut, chiseled profile, concluding with a saline finish. Balancing texture and tension to compelling effect, this beautifully integrated, characterful white is going to be thrilling to revisit in bottle."

FALSTAFF: "Helles Gelbgrün, Silberreflexe. Frische Wiesenkräuter, ein Hauch von Stachelbeeren, Mandarinenzesten, weiße Blüten, mineralischer Touch. Saftig, feine Fruchtsüße, elegant und lebendig strukturiert, salzige Nuancen im Abgang, gute Balance, finessenreich, mit Reifepotenzial ausgestatteter schlankerer Stil."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Reductive and a little green on the nose – less opulent than more-mature vintages on the nose but then it’s very broad and mouth-filling with some lanolin notes. Quite complex, combining many different elements. Still unformed. Drink 2024 - 2036."