Château Lafite Rothschild 2014 is the red Premier Cru Classé from Pauillac, and it belongs to the group of Left Bank wines that turned a difficult season around late. The Médoc communes of Saint-Julien, Pauillac and Saint-Estèphe were the standouts of the year, and Cabernet Sauvignon is the reason why. Six weeks of sun from the last week of August through the first week of October gave the fruit roughly twenty extra days on the vine, which meant picking could happen at the estate's own pace rather than under pressure.
Harvesting of the reds began in late September, with most of the picking in early October. Sorting mattered: veraison (the colour change in the grapes) had come in two stages, so ripeness varied within individual bunches, and only the best fruit made the cut. Vinification ran parcel by parcel in wooden, stainless steel and cement vats.
The result is a classically proportioned Lafite. Alcohol stayed moderate, pH stayed low, and the wine has the fresh, upright frame that Pauillac produces when the Cabernet ripens slowly. Not a blockbuster year. But a precise one.
Robert Parker (95)
The 2014 Lafite-Rothschild, tasted with head winemaker Eric Kohler, has retained that very opulent and outgoing bouquet that dare I say actually reminded me of Mouton-Rothschild. There are layers of blackberry and boysenberry fruit, still that hint of juniper berry, certainly a more extrovert Lafite-Rothschild compared to recent vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp tannin, very focused and quite linear, again with plenty of black fruit laced with cedar and tobacco. It begins to clam up towards the saline finish, suggesting that it will need several years in bottle, but I still have high expectations for this First Growth once afforded several years in bottle.
James Suckling (98)
The aromas of stones, oyster shell, blackcurrants and mushrooms are very intense. Full-bodied, dense and powerful with lots of blackberries. Great finish. Super energy and depth.
Jancis Robinson (17)
Tasted blind. Youthfully dark colour. Sweet dark fruit and tea leaves. That sweetness of fruit seems a touch raisined. Juicy, relatively light-bodied so that the tannins are starting to dry on the finish, or do they just need more time? Hard to tell. (JH)
Vinous (92)
The 2014 Lafite-Rothschild has a typically refined nose at first, though I notice that it gains more richness after five minutes and replicates the menthol scents that I noticed in the previous bottle four years ago. The palate is medium-bodied with rounded tannins, fleshy and ripe. White pepper and fennel infuse the red fruit. Perhaps it doesn't quite "kick on" towards the finish like Mouton, though it does feel reassuringly persistent. Maybe it has something up its sleeve? A second bottle tasted blind at Southwold was a bit "aloof". Tasted at Bordeaux Index's 10-Year-On tasting.
BOW (9-)
Sealed OWC releases direct from Chateau, March 2026.
