Ratings & Tasting Notes:
98 points Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate
A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, this wine represents only 34% of Lafite’s total harvest. In a less than perfect Médoc vintage, Parker found it spectacular since birth, gaining weight and flesh over time — an opaque purple-colored wine he called close to perfection, with a nose of lead pencil, smoke, mineral, and black currant. He described the tannin as sweet and the wine as spectacularly layered yet never heavy, with a long, impeccably balanced finish. Anticipated maturity: 2007–2035.
96 points Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Tasted from double magnum directly from the château’s own reserves, Galloni was amazed how well the wine showed at twenty years of age, trouncing every other First Growth except Haut-Brion. He found it lucid in color with a vivid bouquet of blackberry, blueberry, vanilla, and graphite, perfectly balanced on the palate with layers of ripe black fruit and a silky-smooth texture — sublime enough, in his view, to rival the celebrated 1996.
95 points Wine Spectator
Tasted in a blind retrospective of the 1988 and 1998 vintages, the wine showed amazing aromas of crushed blackberries, toasted oak, currant, and spices, full-bodied with round, velvety tannins and a long finish. Wine Spectator called it the best wine of the Médoc in that tasting, without a doubt.
Cult Wines International Notes:
Château Lafite Rothschild’s history stretches back to the 13th century, when the estate first appears in records under the Gombaud de Lafite family. Its reputation as a wine producer was firmly established by the 18th century under the Ségur family, whose stewardship earned Lafite the nickname “the King’s Wine” at the court of Versailles. Recognized as one of only four estates awarded Premier Cru (First Growth) status in the historic 1855 Bordeaux Classification, the estate entered its modern era in August 1868, when Baron James de Rothschild acquired it at a Paris auction for 4.4 million francs — a sum so large it reportedly exceeded the combined earlier sale prices of Mouton, Margaux, and Palmer combined. The property has remained under Rothschild family stewardship for six generations since, through Baron Elie’s postwar restoration and Baron Eric de Rothschild’s modernization from the 1970s onward, up to current chairwoman Saskia de Rothschild.
The 1998 growing season was, by Bordeaux’s own admission, an uneven one on the Left Bank: an early bud break, uniform flowering, and a dry spring gave way to a scorching August, but growers spent much of the season worried that a rainy harvest might undo their good fortune. That rain held off just long enough — arriving only after picking was already underway — sparing the fruit that had been brought in early. At Lafite, this meant a rigorous selection: only 34% of the total harvest was judged worthy of the grand vin, a discipline that shows in the wine’s concentration and purity despite the vintage’s broader unevenness across the Médoc. The result is a wine that many critics regard as the finest Left Bank success of a vintage more celebrated on Bordeaux’s Right Bank — proof that meticulous selection can outrun a difficult year.
Bottle Size:
750 mL
Storage History:
Always stored on its side in a climate-controlled cellar.
Condition:
Please note: The bottle shown is the exact bottle being sold.
Outstanding condition.
