Chateau Lafite Rothschild 2016

JAMES SUCKLING: "Incredible aromas of crushed berries, sweet tobacco and wet earth. So perfumed and gorgeous. Hot stones and cement, too. Full-bodied, dense and powerful with lots of intense tannins and a never ending finish. Juicy and flavorful. A muscular Lafite, not seen for a long time. Classssssss! Try after 2025."

WEINWISSER: "92 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 8 % Merlot. Undurchsichtiges Purpur mit satter Mitte. Was für ein Parfüm nach reifen Brombeeren und Schattenmorellen, so dicht, so fein, dahinter Heidelbeeren und Thymian sowie Veilchen. Am kräftigen, aber auch seidigen Gaumen mit reifem Tanningerüst, eine Konzentration, welche ich noch nie zuvor erlebt habe! Betört im Rückaroma mit Blaubeere, Lakritze und Holunder, gefolgt von einem nicht enden wollenden Finale mit blaubeerigem Inferno! Für mich dieses Jahr der beste Pauillac."

DECANTER: "What I love about the 2016 Lafite is that the sweetness of the fruit comes through even at this early stage. Sweet, ripe blackberry and cassis pulse through the palate behind the tight construction of tension and classicism given by high acidity and plenty of tannins. It has ripeness and a sense of promise but, as is often the case with a young Lafite, it´s not giving a lot away and we can expect it to age for many decades perfectly comfortably. Extremely accomplished, one to cherish. Matured in 100% new oak."

JEB DUNNUCK: "On another level and one of the greatest young Bordeaux I’ve ever tasted, the 2016 Lafite-Rothschild is composed of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot raised in new oak. It takes the classic elegance and class of Lafite and turns the dial up to 11, offering a massive, heavenly array of blackcurrants, cedar pencil, graphite, tobacco, and incense aromas and flavors that soar from the glass. Deep, full-bodied, and flawlessly constructed, with perfectly integrated fruit, acidity, and tannins, this is legendary stuff all the way. It will be drinkable in 7-8 years and keep for 50-75 years or more. Along with Mouton, it’s the wine of the vintage from the Médoc. Hats off to director Eric Kohler."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Showing a serious depth of color, the wine offers a wealth of dark fruits on the nose. From there you find spice box, leafy tobacco, cigar box, cherry pipe tobacco and sweet coffee bean aromas. On the palate, which is where the show really takes place, the wine is silky, elegant, long, refined and concentrated. It is impossible not to notice the volume, length and especially the wonderful purity in the fruit. The wine is rich, yet incredibly light on its feet. This is destined to be an immortal vintage for Lafite Rothschild that future generations will reap the benefit from. The wine is complete from start to finish and was produced from blending 92% Cabernet Sauvignon with 8% Merlot."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The 2016 Lafite Rothschild is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot, with 15% of the press wine contributing to the blend this year. Deep purple-black in color, it slowly reveals the most gorgeous perfume of kirsch, lilacs, black raspberries and warm blackcurrants with underlying nuances of cigar box, rose hip tea, cloves, licorice and pencil lead plus a waft of garrigue. Medium-bodied and built like a brick house with a firm yet beautifully ripe, finely pixelated tannic backbone and seamless freshness supporting the amazing intensity of black fruits and floral layers, it finishes very long and provocatively perfumed."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "Almost entirely Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine beautifully sums up the density and the richness of this variety in Pauillac. It is impressive, made even more so in this vintage by the ripeness of the tannins, the beautiful, plush fruit and enormous promise. Drink this wine from 2026. Its aging potential is enormous. "

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "A blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot, the 2016 Lafite Rothschild is deep garnet-purple in color. It needs a lot of swirling and shaking to unlock notes of redcurrant jelly, wild blueberries, and cassis, followed by suggestions of tar, licorice, crushed rocks, forest floor, and black truffles, plus an emerging waft of lilacs. Medium-bodied, the palate is taut with muscular black fruits and mineral layers, supported by ripe, fine-grained tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long with loads of earthy sparks. Needs a lot of time!"

FALSTAFF: "Tiefdunkles Rubingranat, opaker Kern, dezente Randaufhellung, einladende schwarze Beerenfrucht, reife Herzkirschen, süße Gewürze, kandierte Orangenzesten, tabakige Nuancen. Kraftvoll, saftige, eher rotbeerige Textur, straffe, tragende Tannine, frisch strukturiert, rote Kirschen, mineralsich, zeigt bereits sehr gute Länge, mineralischer Nachhall. Herzkirschen im Nachhall."

WINE SPECTATOR: "This offers the best of both sides of Pauillac, with a deep, deep well of dark currant, fig, blackberry and black cherry paste flavors forming a lush side while a series of I-beams made of graphite and iron provide the rigid structure. The two sides meld, pulling in extra sweet tobacco, smoldering cast iron, juniper and savory notes on the finish, leaving a mouthwatering feel. A real stunner. Best from 2025 through 2045. 16,000 cases made."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Tasted blind. First bottle: Big, burly, mulberry nose. Then a little tart on the end. Big and bold. More concentrated than the … Second bottle: Similar rather glorious but possibly OTT nose and then polished tannins and less tart on the end. Very voluptuous. I’m sure no one else in the world would demand a second bottle of this; it’s just that the Southwold crew are subjecting all these 2016s to such scrutiny. Slightly salty."