Le Petit Haut Lafitte 2009

Description

Yield 34 hectolitres per hectare before selection of the the grand vin Smith Haut Lafitte, les Hauts de Smith, le Petit Haut Lafitte, and les Hauts de Maujan.Grape varieties 64% Cabernet Sauvignon / 30% Merlot / 5% Cabernet Franc / 1% Petit VerdotThe bunches were fermented whole in small oak vats at 28C and extracted with manual pigeage punching down the cap.Aged in barrel on the lees for 18 months 65% of the new barrels were made at the estate’s own cooperage, and only racked once. Duration of ageing adjusted to each wine.2009 a superb and generous vintageThe temperatures in 2009 were close to those in 2005, and rainfall was similar to 2000two great examples with regard to crucial ripening parameters! Summer was relatively dry with beautiful sunny days and cool nights. Thanks to deep rooting and meticulous work in the vineyard to find the best possible equilibrium between the soil and the vines, vine growth came to a halt on the 20th of July and a long, fine ripening period began. With the help of satellite photos, we now have a map showing how each plot ripens. This enables us to organise picking at peak maturity and to harvest grapes of uniform ripeness. Assisted as well by two new technologies optical sorting of the fruit and destemming by vibration, we were able to obtain exactly the desired degree of extraction.The harvest began on 25 September in plots of young Merlot vines and finished on 14 October with Cabernet Franc. The excellent initial impressions we had from tasting the grapes were soon confirmed in the fermentation vats. The new wine was deeply-coloured, almost black. It had great concentration with powerful, complex, and elegant aromas of red and black fruit, spices, herbs, cedar, liquorice, clove, and graphiteThis complexity was also present on the palate, and the wine soon proved to be rich, powerful, balanced, and refreshing. With time, power and concentration have become its hallmarksbut not at all at the expense of finesse. The tannin is incredibly rich and there is a beautiful, long aftertaste. The aromatic complexity on the nose carries over to the palate, which features superb red fruit and spicy flavours clove, liquorice, and cinnamon as well as subtle overtones of graphite, gunflint, and violet2009 red Smith Haut Lafitte displays a rare combination of power, richness, outstanding elegance, and delicate tannin.Robert Parker Wine Advocate #199 Feb 2012 The finest wine ever made by proprietors Daniel and Florence Cathiard, the 2009 Smith-Haut-Lafitte exhibits an opaque blue/purple color in addition to a glorious nose of acacia flowers, licorice, charcoal, blueberries, black raspberries, lead pencil shavings and incense. This massive, extraordinarily rich, unctuously textured wine may be the most concentrated effort produced to date, although the 2000, 2005 and 2010 are nearly as prodigious. A gorgeous expression of Pessac-Leognan with sweet tannin, emerging charm and delicacy, and considerable power, depth, richness and authority, it should age effortlessly for 30-40+ years. Bravo! – Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte