Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte 2024

JAMES SUCKLING: "A fresh, complex and deep nose of spiced blue fruit, waxberries, blue flowers, minerals, licorice and graphite. Full-bodied and really fine-grained, with tight, chalky tannins and a long, structured finish. Very juicy and complete, with excellent fruit definition and an al dente texture. More reactive tannins this year. 67% cabernet sauvignon, 27% merlot, 5% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot."

VINUM: "Leuchtendes Rubinrot; tiefgründige Nase, florale Noten, kühler Rauch, dunkle Kirschen, feuchter Stein; kompakter Gaumen, gradlinig, saftig, der Wein baut Spannung auf, die Frucht wirkt auf den Punkt gereift, die Struktur aus feinem Gerbstoff und rassiger Säure stützt, langanhaltendes, würziges, rotfruchtiges Finale. Ein leichtfüssiger, fast schon burgundisch anmutender Smith Haut Lafitte."

JEB DUNNUCK: "The Grand Vin 2024 Château Smith Haut Lafitte is based on 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot, harvested between September 18 and October 9. Resting in 60% new barrels, it's a deep purple-hued wine with classic aromas of dark currants, smoky tobacco, graphite, and spicy, wood-driven nuances. These carry to a medium to full-bodied Pessac-Léognan with ripe, velvety tannins, a dense mid-palate, and outstanding length. It's one of the few 2024s that will benefit from bottle age."

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "Deep garnet-purple colored. Needs a little swirling and coaxing to bring out notes of fresh red and black currants, juicy blackberries, and lilac, followed by hints of cedar chest, bay leaves, and underbrush. The light to medium-bodied palate has a firm, grainy texture and beautiful freshness with tightly wound red and black fruit flavors and a long mineral-laced finish."

ANSON: "Toasted cedar and sandalwood oak on the nose, the team as Smith Haut-Lafitte has done a lovely job of adding a gourmet lick of grilled blueberry and raspberry fruits to the opening moments of the wine, alongside richer damson and black cherry in the mid-palate. Great energy, lift and juice, vivid fruits, graphite, ink, chalk tannins, slimmer through the mid palate than in the bigger vintages, but everything in its place. 21hl/h yield, 60% new oak. Fabien Teitgen technical director."

WEINWISSER: "67 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 27 % Merlot, 5 % Cabernet Franc, 1 % Petit Verdot, 21 hl/ha. Verhaltener Beginn, komplexes Bouquet, edle Cassiswürze, Schattenmorellen und heller Tabak. Im zweiten Ansatz Kardamom und Szechuanpfeffer. Am erhabenen Gaumen mit edler Struktur, fein körnigem Extrakt, engmaschigem, mittlerem Körper. Im gebündelten, sehr geradlinigen Finale rote Beeren, Tabakblatt und mehlige Adstringenz. Ein sehr geradliniger und eleganter Smith."

DECANTER: "Dark fruit and soft rose aromatics, neat and tidy scents. A lovely juicy, fun expression from Smith this year with a dollop of sweet ripe fruit with cooling acidity and fine tannins. Definitely not demonstrative, this is about the precision rather than power or density but it’s graceful and long with focus and charm. Not trying too hard, this is sinewy with a soft fleshiness and really mineral-edged finish that adds tension - liquorice, slate, graphite and pencil lead. Harmonious and balanced. This leans into the vintage. Good construction and energy. 1% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Ageing 60% new oak barrels. 3.6pH."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Zart nach Brombeeren, ein Hauch von Lakritze, noch etwas scheu, ein Hauch von Edelholz, rotbeerige Nuancen. Komplex, feine rote Herzkirschen, frischer Säurebogen, mineralisch-salzig, straff im Abgang, feine Cassisnoten im Nachhall, verfügt über Reifepotenzial."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Spicy red fruits blend with dried herbs, coco, plums, and tobacco on the nose. The palate is modern-classic in style, with lift, length, and vibrancy, leaving you with cherries, strawberries, cocoa, and mint in the mid-palate that carries through to the long, finish. Picking took place from September 18 - October 9. The wine is a blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, and is aging in 60% New, French oak barrels. 13.2% ABV. pH 3.65. Drink from 2028-2042."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Notes of spices, oak, dark berries and gentian preface the 2024 Smith Haut Lafitte, a medium-bodied, firm and structured wine with an assertive tannic frame that leads to a compact, gentian-inflected finish. This blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, matured in 60% new oak, is somewhat introverted and linear, making it a chewy Smith Haut Lafitte that will need time to unwind."