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Description

Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1996
Pauillac
1nl, different importers
Bottle (2)
"Tasted three times since bottling, the 1996 Lafite-Rothschild is unquestionably this renowned estate's greatest wine. As I indicated last year, only 38% of the crop was deemed grand enough to be put into the final blend, which is atypically high in Cabernet Sauvignon (83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 7% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot). This massive wine may be the biggest, largest-scaled Lafite I have ever tasted... The wine exhibits a thick-looking, ruby/purple color, and a knock-out nose of lead pencil, minerals, flowers, and black currant scents. Extremely powerful and full-bodied, with remarkable complexity for such a young wine, this huge Lafite is oozing with extract and richness, yet has managed to preserve its quintessentially elegant personality." (100pts Robert Parker, Wine Advocate #122, April 1999)

"The 1996 Lafite-Rothschild was remarkably deep in color considering that it is now 20 years in age. The bouquet is classic Pauillac with pencil shavings and sous-bois infusing the black fruit, masculine and a little aloof, yet focused and very well delineated. The palate is very well balanced with crisp blackberry and boysenberry fruit, spicier than I recollect, a crescendo of flavors so that it seems understated at first but fans out with a sense of confidence towards the finish." (98 pts. Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, Oct. 2016)

"The 1996 Lafite-Rothschild is the strongest wine from the First Growth in that decade. This bottle, served blind and ex-château in Bordeaux, is so precociously backward that I estimate it to be half its age. Blackberry, cedar and graphite are here as usual, though this bottle has even more intensity than the one served at the estate in 2018. The palate is brilliantly balanced with fine tannins and very intense graphite-infused fruit; there's just a touch more fruité on the finish. Superb." (97 pts. Neal Martin, Vinous, Dec. 2021)


More information about Chateau Lafite Rothschild Wine.

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Auction Info

Auction Dates
February, 2014
15th Saturday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 3
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 194

Buyer's Premium per Lot:
22% of the successful bid per lot.

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Sold on Feb 15, 2014 for: $1,586.00
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