Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte Blanc 2023

Professional reviews

Robert Parker (95)

94-96: Aromas of white fruits, crisp orchard fruits, spices, smoke, spring flowers and pear introduce the 2023 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, a medium to full-bodied, layered and textured wine with a fleshy core of fruit and racy acids, concluding with a mineral, fresh and long finish highlighted by delicate notes of thyme and garrigue. Comprising 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon Gris and matured in 50% new oak, this blend is among the finest white wines produced at this address.

James Suckling (97)

97-98: Another exceptional vintage for Smith-Haut-Lafite Blanc. It’s so complex and structured, offering a palate that feels similar to the texture of a red wine with a velvety tannin structure. There’s a lot going on here. Spice, crushed seashell and citrus blossom. Salty, too. Weightless and so long. 90% sauvignon blanc, 5% sauvignon gris and 5% semillon.

Vinous (96)

95-97: The 2023 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc was picked from August 23 to September 9 at 36hL/ha and matured in 50% new oak. It has a reticent bouquet at first, requiring a few swirls of the glass to reveal touches of orange pith, peach skin, wild fennel and light pressed white flower scents. The palate is very well balanced with a lovely creamy texture, counterbalanced by the taut line of acidity. Very poised and focused, it's somehow almost Corton-Charlemagne-inspired on the finish (perhaps due to the umami). This is a seriously fine white Pessac-Léognan

Jeb Dunnuck (96)

95-97: One of the bigger, richer wines in the vintage, the light gold-hued 2023 Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc offers up a killer nose of orange blossom, honeyed citrus, toast, spice, and minty flowers. It's medium to full-bodied and has a richly textured, layered mouthfeel, bright acidity, and a great finish. It's probably the white of the vintage.

Decanter (96)

Strong aromatics, on the expressive side with herbal accents, spiced wood, green apple, quince, apricot, mango, peach honeycomb and elderflower. Very floral. Fresh and expansive, mineral and direct, but a good body full of fruit, freshness and honey characters. Definitely more opulent and exotic than the others in the range with hints of tropical fruit - pineapple and mango but also some lovely bitterness which adds tension to balance it out. A good combination, more vibrancy and energy than in previous years. Succulent and sumptuous with salinity. Very good and very easy to drink. Ageing 50% new oak.