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Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte Pessac Leognan Blanc 2018 750ml

size
750ml
country
France
region
Bordeaux
appellation
Graves
subappellation
Pessac Leognan
JS
98
JD
98
WE
97
WA
96
WS
96
DC
94
VM
94
JS
98
Rated 98 by James Suckling
Dried apple, apricot, grapefruit zest, flint and a hint of hay on the nose. It’s full-bodied with crisp acidity and tight, concentrated layers of fresh and dried fruit. Incredible depth and focus. Even better from 2022. ... More details
Image of bottle
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Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte Pessac Leognan Blanc 2018 750ml

SKU 852414
Sale
Qualifies for 12 Ship Free
Choose 12 bottles, get free shipping
$163.20
/750ml bottle
$149.80
/750ml bottle
Quantity
* This item is available for online ordering only. It can be picked up or shipped from our location within 4-6 business days. ?
Professional Ratings
JS
98
JD
98
WE
97
WA
96
WS
96
DC
94
VM
94
JS
98
Rated 98 by James Suckling
Dried apple, apricot, grapefruit zest, flint and a hint of hay on the nose. It’s full-bodied with crisp acidity and tight, concentrated layers of fresh and dried fruit. Incredible depth and focus. Even better from 2022.
JD
98
Rated 98 by Jeb Dunnuck
The Grand Vin 2018 Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc ratchets everything up a notch, offering a vividly fresh bouquet of crushed citrus, salty minerality, caramelized grapefruit, acacia flowers, and toast. It's rich, medium to full-bodied, and racy on the palate, with bright acidity, yet it still brings beautiful concentration of fruit as well as length on the finish. This is a brilliant white in every way. Give bottles another year or three and enjoy over the following 10-15. I suspect it will evolve well beyond that as well.
WE
97
Rated 97 by Wine Enthusiast
Powerful and rich, this dense wine offers intense fruits and a texture that promises considerable aging potential. White-fruit flavors come through strongly, combining with spice, structure and concentration. The wine will age for many years. Drink from 2025. Organic and biodynamic. (Cellar Selection)
WA
96
Rated 96 by Wine Advocate
The Smith Haut Lafitte 2018 Blanc is a blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon Gris, aged in 50% new oak barriques. The nose hits the ground running with vibrant notions of fresh grapefruit, yuzu zest and lemon tart, plus touches of lime leaves, sea spray, green mango and wet pebbles. The medium to full-bodied palate quivers with energetic citrus and mineral-inspired flavors, charged with fantastic tension and delivering a gorgeous silkiness to the texture, finishing long and steely. A bedazzling Pessac-Leognan that cannot fail to impress, it should show best after a couple of years of cellaring and then drink for a good 15+ years.
WS
96
Rated 96 by Wine Spectator
This has a broad mix of lemon peel, gooseberry, tarragon and star fruit flavors that are holding back a bit for now, while wet straw, macadamia nut and shortbread accents emerge through the finish. Quite rich in feel throughout, but has the underlying zip and cut for balance. Seriously long too. Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Sauvignon Gris. Best from 2022 through 2030. 2,083 cases made.
DC
94
Rated 94 by Decanter
There is plenty of white pear and white peach going on here along with a creaminess through the palate. As it opens it begins to show citrus and honeysuckle, with everything held together by a grip that builds and gathers momentum. Beautiful balance overall, with a prickle of bitterness on the finish giving focus and contrast. 50% new oak. Harvested 24 August to 17 September - the longest white harvest at SHL (three weeks in total, compared with one week normally, because they were harvesting early in some parts of the vineyard to keep acidity in half the grapes and other plots a little later for texture, so composing the blend from the start). Drinking Window 2021 - 2036
VM
94
Rated 94 by Vinous Media
The 2018 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc has clearly opened up in the 12 months since it was bottled. It has a really gorgeous bouquet of honeysuckle, orange blossom, nectarine and white chocolate aromas, the oak playing a supporting role. The focused palate delivers well-judged acidity, good depth, and flavors of tinned pineapple, clementine and touches of peach, maybe less malic than it showed out of barrel. It sports very good length, although it will clearly benefit from a couple of years in bottle.
Winery
The white 2018 Smith Haut Lafitte gives a waft of SO2 over a delicate core of lemonade, fresh pears, and green mango, plus hints of chalk dust and coriander seed. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is taut with soft acidity and an oily texture, finishing with great length. - The Wine Independent
Product Details
size
750ml
country
France
region
Bordeaux
appellation
Graves
subappellation
Pessac Leognan
Overview
The Grand Vin 2018 Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc ratchets everything up a notch, offering a vividly fresh bouquet of crushed citrus, salty minerality, caramelized grapefruit, acacia flowers, and toast. It's rich, medium to full-bodied, and racy on the palate, with bright acidity, yet it still brings beautiful concentration of fruit as well as length on the finish. This is a brilliant white in every way. Give bottles another year or three and enjoy over the following 10-15. I suspect it will evolve well beyond that as well.
green grapes

Varietal: White Bordeaux

Of all the blended white wines in the world, it is those which come out of the Bordeaux region of France which have an unrivaled reputation for excellence of character and sublime, complex flavors This is mainly due to the expertise of the established wineries of the region, who have for centuries been carefully and skilfully blended selected grape varietals in order to balance their wines and bring out each grape's best features. There are nine grape varietals allowed by French law for the inclusion in Bordeaux white blended wines, and these are Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Muscadelle, Sauvignon Gris, Merlot Blanc, Ugni Blanc, Colombard, Ondenc and Mauzac. However, the vast majority of white wines from this region are made primarily from Sauvignon Blanc grapes, with a little Sémillon or Muscadelle blended into their fermenting juices.
barrel

Region: Bordeaux

Although most commonly associated with their superb blended red wines, the world-famous region of Bordeaux in France is responsible for a relatively wide array of wines, ranging from the sweet and viscous white wines of Sauternes, to the dry and acidic single variety white wines found all over the region. However, it is the red wines which regularly make the wine world's headlines, and have historically been regarded as the finest on earth. The secret to the region's success is the fact that the warm and humid climate, coupled with mineral rich clay and gravel based soils produces grapes of excellent quality. Wineries in this region have spent hundreds of years mastering the art of blending and oak aging in order to get the best results from each grape, and remain the envy of the world to this day.
fields

Country: France

It is widely understood and accepted that the finest wines in the world come out of France. Whether you are drinking a vintage bottle from one of the famed Grand Cru wineries of Bordeaux - such as Chateau Margaux or Chateau Lafite-Rothschild - or a more simple and affordable bottle from one of the lesser known appellations in Burgundy, the likelihood is that the wine is packed full of intense and interesting flavors, and has a fine, balanced structure typical of almost all French produce. This reputation for excellence is taken extremely serious by the French, with dozens of regularly updated laws and regulations ensuring the quality and accurate labeling of wines. Such dedication and passion for fine wine, representative of the region in which it is produced, means customers can be assured that when they buy a bottle from France, they are buying something almost certain to please and delight.
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More Details
green grapes

Varietal: White Bordeaux

Of all the blended white wines in the world, it is those which come out of the Bordeaux region of France which have an unrivaled reputation for excellence of character and sublime, complex flavors This is mainly due to the expertise of the established wineries of the region, who have for centuries been carefully and skilfully blended selected grape varietals in order to balance their wines and bring out each grape's best features. There are nine grape varietals allowed by French law for the inclusion in Bordeaux white blended wines, and these are Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Muscadelle, Sauvignon Gris, Merlot Blanc, Ugni Blanc, Colombard, Ondenc and Mauzac. However, the vast majority of white wines from this region are made primarily from Sauvignon Blanc grapes, with a little Sémillon or Muscadelle blended into their fermenting juices.
barrel

Region: Bordeaux

Although most commonly associated with their superb blended red wines, the world-famous region of Bordeaux in France is responsible for a relatively wide array of wines, ranging from the sweet and viscous white wines of Sauternes, to the dry and acidic single variety white wines found all over the region. However, it is the red wines which regularly make the wine world's headlines, and have historically been regarded as the finest on earth. The secret to the region's success is the fact that the warm and humid climate, coupled with mineral rich clay and gravel based soils produces grapes of excellent quality. Wineries in this region have spent hundreds of years mastering the art of blending and oak aging in order to get the best results from each grape, and remain the envy of the world to this day.
fields

Country: France

It is widely understood and accepted that the finest wines in the world come out of France. Whether you are drinking a vintage bottle from one of the famed Grand Cru wineries of Bordeaux - such as Chateau Margaux or Chateau Lafite-Rothschild - or a more simple and affordable bottle from one of the lesser known appellations in Burgundy, the likelihood is that the wine is packed full of intense and interesting flavors, and has a fine, balanced structure typical of almost all French produce. This reputation for excellence is taken extremely serious by the French, with dozens of regularly updated laws and regulations ensuring the quality and accurate labeling of wines. Such dedication and passion for fine wine, representative of the region in which it is produced, means customers can be assured that when they buy a bottle from France, they are buying something almost certain to please and delight.