CARRUADES DE CHÂTEAU LAFITE
2014 Pauillac
58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot. Great nose, floral and pretty, blueberry and bramble which follows to the palate. Dense and concentrated yet there is a fineness to the blue, spiced fruit. Lithe and high-toned with a great sense of purity. Perky cherry-skin adds zip and drive to the long fresh finish. Rating: 91-92 L&S (Apr 2015)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
Very sleek and refined, with flavors of silky-edged cassis and cherry preserves, backed by light pepper, bay, black tea and iron notes on the finish. Drinking range: 2018 - 2030 Rating: 91 James Molesworth, The Wine Spectator (Jan 2017)
The Carruades de Lafite is a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon and 42% Merlot. It has a pure blackberry, slightly tarry bouquet that is well defined, a little strict perhaps, but focused. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin in the mouth, a much more sophisticated Carruades de Lafite than last year with a crisp, nicely poised and lightly spiced finish. This is a decent, satisfying Carruades de Lafite that should be afforded three or four years in bottle. Drinking range: 2018 - 2032 Rating: 88-90 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2015)
Beautifully expressed and polished aromas showing Lafite's wild violets, very fine texture, balance and length. (Highly Recommended Pauillac, Decanter.) Drinking range: 2019 - 2028 Rating: 91 Steven Spurrier (Apr 2015)
An enticing mix of dark red cherry, plum, violet, lavender and graphite notes emerge from the 2014 Carruades de Lafite, a wine of notable depth and purity, especially at this level. There is a definition and inner sweetness to the fruit that is impossible to miss. All the Lafite signatures are present, specifically the intensely perfumed, sweet fruit that is often found in this sector in Pauillac. The Carruades is a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon and 42% Merlot. Carruades de Lafite represents 25% of the chateau's production. Rating: 88-90 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2015)
58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot. Quite blue, raw-looking crimson. Not very expressive on the nose. Dry and rather obdurate on the palate. Some smoothing due to top-quality old oak but there is not much fun or zest here. Dry, austere but quite persistent finish. Drinking range: 2020 - 2030 Rating: 16+ Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2015)
Both nose and palate have a fragrant charm bright fresh floral. The start of the palate seems quite light with bilberry and bramble but there is mid sweetness depth of flavour mid richness. Fresh at the back the finish is bright with lingering flavours. Drinking range: 2026 - 2036 Rating: 86-90 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Apr 2015)
"Upright, elegant and long on the palate," is how winemaker Charles Chevalier describes his wines in 2014. This is certainly a very polished, refreshing second wine: focused, pure and refined, with taut minerality and classic cassis and lead pencil notes, complemented by refined oak. (One of Tim's Top 10 Second Wines.) Drinking range: 2020 - 2028 Rating: 94 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2015)
Gorgeous aromas of blackcurrants, berries, blueberries and licorice. Minerals, too. Full, dense and tight. Wonderfully racy finish. Mineral, iodine and oyster shell undertones. Second wine of Lafite. “We really wanted to make an excellent Carraudes,” says the winemaker Charles Chevallier. They did. Rating: 92-93 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Mar 2015)
Château Lafite
1855 classification - Premier Grand Cru Classé The long history of Château Lafite includes a period in the 17th and 18th century when it was owned by the Ségur family, who also at the time owned Latour and who's name lives on at Calon-Ségur and Phelan-Ségur. By the time of the 1855 classification which rightly recognised the reputation of Lafite, the estate was under a complicated ownership arrangement which inevitably unravelled, and Lafite was sold to Baron James de Rothschild, largely it would seem to keep uo with his cousin Nathaniel Rothschild who had recently purchased Brane-Mouton (later to become Mouton Rothschild). He died a couple of months later, but his descendents own the estate to this day. Baron Eric, who took control during the 1970's, returned Lafite to its rightful place at the top of the Bordeaux hierarchy with a programme of investment, improvement and modernisation. There are 103ha of land under vine at Lafite, facing Cos d'Estournel across the Jalle du Breuil which marks the border between Pauillac and Saint Estèphe. Indeed, Lafite own a small parcel of vines over the border in Saint Estèphe. Just over 70% is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon with 25% Merlot and smaller portions of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Vines for the grand vin average around 40 years old with none less than 10. Wines are aged in barrels from their own cooperage for aound 18 months. The second wine is Carruades de Lafite which usually features a higher proportion of Merlot in the cuvée.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.