2005 Château Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac, Bordeaux

An incredible nose, so subtle with red fruits, mint, minerals, and all sorts of flowers give way to Cohiba cigar tobacco. The palate has such freshness and density, with perfectly polished tannins. Slightly leathery, like a wonderful Hermes bag. What a wine, please leave this for another ten years. Pull the cork in 2020. 10% Merlot. Find the wine

A wine worthy of superlatives, the 2005 Lafite showed incredible concentration yet a superb balance. The lovely blackcurrant and plum fruit shows a fragrant floral edge, hints of oak spice, and a firm, earthy underpinning. The texture is superbly elegant, with a lovely freshness and a lilting, silky finish, yet it does not lack a tannic grip, and the finish is satisfyingly long. Near perfection. A blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot with just a drop of Petit Verdot, aged in new casks.

Effortless, balanced, fine elongated tannins, mouthwatering and moreish. Walking the tightrope of concentration and uplift, as Lafite does so well, and is a wonderful example of this vintage, still with decades ahead of it, delivering cassis, slate, mint leaf, sea spray, crayon and joy. 100% new oak Ignace-Joseph Vanlerberghe 1855, Baron Joseph 1868, scales on the bottle. Charles Chevallier technical director for this 2005 vintage, in the last year with Emile Peynaud as consultant. 43hl/h yield.

The 2005 Château Lafite-Rothschild is a beauty, and it has that quintessential power paired with incredible elegance and complexity that this Château does so well. Based on 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Merlot, it has perfumed notes of red and black fruits, freshly sharpened pencils, saddle leather, graphite, and spice. These all carry to a medium to full-bodied 2005 that has a layered, balanced mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It stays relatively focused and tight on the palate, and benefits from air. Drink bottles any time over the coming 20-30 years.

The 2005 Lafite-Rothschild is a gorgeous wine, but it is also very young. Readers lucky enough to own it will find a very classic, gracious Lafite-Rothschild that still needs a few years to be at its best. Bright red-toned fruit, crushed rocks, mint and licorice open first, followed by darker aromas and flavors that develop as the wine gains volume with air. Tasted next to its peers, Lafite is so typical of itself and less marked by the year. And that is one of the signs of a truly great terroir. Lafite-Rothschild is not as showy as many other wines in this vintage, but it is so true to its own identity, and that is the highest compliment I can pay it. The 2005 is 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, done in 100% new oak, which is not at all noticeable. At the time, the Cabernet percentage was quite high, but that has now become the norm. Tasted two times.

Having tasted the 2005 Château Lafite-Rothschild several times both blind and non-blind, it comes across as a First Growth politely requesting more time to "settle". Here, from an ex-château bottle tasted in Bordeaux, it delivers that graphite, pencil-box bouquet that unfurls gradually in the glass, biding its time, graceful but not intense. Parallel to some of its fellow 2005s, it is developing a little more spice, namely thyme and sage, than I recall. The palate is medium-bodied and beautifully balanced, to wit, a sophisticated Pauillac that priorities elegance and poise over intensity of fruit—in keeping with Lafite Rothschild's style. You come away with the sense that it will take its time and decline, giving away a great deal in its primacy, even if it is still more approachable than the 2005 Latour for example. Therefore, I would be inclined to set this aside for several more years. Tasted November 2014.

89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot.

Lovely deep purple colour in the glass with lifted violet and leafy black fruit on the nose. On the palate there was a cool, menthol edge with slightly subdued fruit and a surprising amount of oak evident. Perhaps not the best bottle? Fine texture on the palate with ripe, polished tannins, plenty of acidity and a racy feel on the finish. Still seems a young wine which will repay further ageing – I suspect this was a bottle in less-than-perfect condition (I scored a bottle tasted in 2009 a slightly higher 18.5/20), but expensive to find out at £750 a time.

The 2005 Lafite is a blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Merlot. Deep garnet-brick in color, it slips sensuously from the glass with eager-to-please scents of creme de cassis, Christmas cake, and cedar chest, giving way to hints of Indian spices, sweaty leather, and pencil shavings. The mineral-laced, medium-bodied palate is elegant and shimmery, delivering firm tannins and a soft-spoken finish. Delivering a mature, wonderfully evocative experience now, it is well within its drinking window and should cellar to 2045+. At this time the estate was managed by Baron Eric de Rothschild and Charles Chevallier was technical director.

Relatively pale garnet and relatively ethereal as usual. Savoury and fresh. Extremely distinctive. Mix of ink and cheese biscuits and very refreshing. Sui generis.

So refined and silky, with a more cherry-red theme than many of the other darker wines, this is a beautifully textured wine featuring silky tannins and perfect equilibrium already. Classy, à point and with another decade and more ahead, this is a super-elegant Lafite, and it shows terrific style already.