In Bond Fine Wine. 1996 Château Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac, Bordeaux, France. First Growth • Red Bordeaux in 12x75cl. Top critic score: 100/100 (JA). Drinking window: 2021–2040. Sold in bond by Albany Vintners, independent fine wine merchants.
One of the most sought-after & powerful brands in the world of fine wine. First Growth Chateau Lafite Rothschild is a Bordeaux icon, renowned for its elegance, quality & longevity, favouring restraint and finesse over sheer power. Lafite is globally renowned with particularly strong demand across all markets, notably Asia - especially China, where it became a symbol of status and luxury during the 2000s. Landmark vintages like 1996, 2000, 2003, 2009, 2010 & 2016 continue to reinforce its reputation for quality & technical excellence with subtlety, ageability & authority. Its second wine, Carruades de Lafite, is also in high demand across international markets.
Neal Martin (NM) — 98/100 · Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com, 28/10/2016 · Drink 2020-2050
The 1996 Lafite-Rothschild was remarkably deep in color considering that it is now 20 years in age. The bouquet is classic Pauillac with pencil shavings and sous-bois infusing the black fruit, masculine and a little aloof, yet focused and very well delineated. The palate is very well balanced with crisp blackberry and boysenberry fruit, spicier than I recollect, a crescendo of flavors so that it…
Neal Martin (NM) — 97/100 · Vinous, 26/01/2023 · Drink 2025-2065
The 1996 Lafite-Rothschild is the strongest wine from the First Growth in that decade. This bottle, served blind and ex-château in Bordeaux, is so precociously backward that I estimate it to be half its age. Blackberry, cedar and graphite are here as usual, though this bottle has even more intensity than the one served at the estate in 2018. The palate is brilliantly balanced with fine tannins an…
Jane Anson (JA) — 100/100 · Inside Bordeaux, 24/11/2021 · Drink 2021-2038
Tasted first at the château in July, then again at a Berry Bros supper in late November, and both time it effortlessly showcased why Lafite is one of the most sought-after estates in the world. Takes its time to open, even at 25 years old, but a bit of patience and you are rewarded with rosebud, tuffle, ash, pencil lead and crushed mint, all gently playing around the cassis, bilberry and blackber…