Carruades de Lafite, Pauillac, Non OWC, 2004
critic reviews
Medium red-ruby. Plum, currant, brown spices, leather and tobacco leaf on the nose, along with some smoky oak. Distinctly firm and herbal but with a sweetly spicy quality to the flavors of cassis, lead pencil and tobacco leaf. Finishes with a fine dusting of tannins and a repeating herbal note.
Lafites second wine has become stronger over recent vintages as the selection for the grand vin has become Draconian under administrator Charles Chevalier. The dense ruby/purple-tinged 2004 Carruades de Lafite (48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot) exhibits sweet, crunchy, savory, black cherry, and raspberry fruit along with hints of road tar, spring flowers, and a touch of minerality. Give it 1-2 years of cellaring, and drink it over the following 12-13.