For more than a century, the famous French wine Château Lafite ("Chateau Lafite") remains the most expensive and best in the world, personifying respectability and wealth, luxury and prestige. Since the end of the XIX century, several generations of the Rothschild family have worked on the creation of these unique wines.
Hill estate
One of the world's most famous wineries Château Lafite-Rothschild is located in French Bordeaux, Medoc district. This feudal estate was first mentioned in documents dating from 1234. Philologists say that the name "Lafite" comes from the Gascon la hite, meaning "slope, hill." Such a name is very suitable for a manor located on a gentle hill.
A bit of history
The Château Lafite estate was owned until the summer of 1868, when Baron James Jacob de Rothschild, who headed the French branch of this famous family at that time, acquired more than 70 hectares of vineyards and the farm itself, the following individuals:
- the nobleman Joseph Soba de Pomme;
- Jacques de Segur - notary;
- Alexander de Segur;
- Nicolas-Alexander, Marquis de Segur;
- Nicolas Marie Alexandre de SĂŠgur;
- Nicolas Pierre de Pichard;
- Baron Jean Arend de Vos Van Steenvwyck;
- Jean de Witt;
- Oton Guillaume Jean Berg;
- Jean Gaulle de Frankenstein;
- banker Vanlerberg;
- Madame Lemer Barbara Rosalie.
Recognition time
By the beginning of the XVIII century, âChateau Lafiteâ - wine is already well-known and in demand. The âwine princeâ, Nicolas Alexandre de SĂŠgur, contributed a lot to this, and he made great efforts to improve the wines produced by his farm. The changes that have taken place are highly appreciated both in France itself and abroad. The duke of Richelieu, during his governorship in the province of Guyenne, on the advice of a family doctor, used the wine Chateau Lafite. His recommendations helped Château Lafite be on the royal table of Louis XV. The courtiers and nobles, following the example of their ruler, also began to order him. The English Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole, praised the products of Chateau Lafite and ordered more than 200 liters of wine for himself every few months.
In the âOfficial Classification of Bordeaux Winesâ published in the mid-19th century, the wine producing estate Château Lafite was officially included in the Premier Grand Cru Classe category and was recognized as one of the four best.
The era of the Rothschilds
In the summer of 1868, vineyards and the Chateau Lafite estate were once again sold. The price paid by James de Rothschild at that time was almost 5 million francs. Three months after this deal, James passed away, and his three sons inherited the winery, Edmond, Alphonse and Gustavus. The harvest of this very year, 1868, received a record high price, beaten only at the end of the 20th century, for a 900 liter barrel - 6,250 francs, which is equivalent to the modern 5,000 euros.
Turbulent time
From the end of the 19th century and throughout the first half of the 20th century, the Chateau Lafite Rothschild fought for survival. The gray mold epidemic and phylloxera negatively affected the vineyards. The First World War and the then Great Depression of the thirties led to an unprecedented drop in wine prices of European producers. All this contributed to the fact that the Rothschilds unclassified some wines from the harvests from 1882 to 1886, and some other years. In addition, during this period, in order to exclude the possibility of counterfeiting and fraud, wine was bottled only in the Château Lafite. Around the same time, the area of ââvineyards was significantly reduced, but nevertheless there were several issues of excellent quality wine, for example, 1899, 1906 and 1929. Eli Robert, Edmond's son and great-grandson of James de Rothschild, took the helm of the family business at the end of World War II. It was he who, in collaboration with the famous oenologist of that time, Professor Emil Payneau, made a huge contribution to the post-war restoration of French winemaking and became one of the founders of the Medoc wine-making community.
Change of power
Generations changed in the seventies of the last century, and Baron Eli Robert transferred the control of the Chateau Lafitte to Eric de Rothschild, his nephew. The new leader not only updated the team, but also began planting young vines and began to use unique developments and methods for plant protection. Technologist Charles Chevalier, invited in the last decade of the 20th century to manage the French estate and control the quality of the wine produced, still works for the Rothschilds.
Current state
Today, the family-owned Chateau Lafite Rothschild is part of the DBR Lafite winery holding - Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite), owned by the French branch of this family. This enterprise has acquired several more vineyards in France, as well as in South American countries such as Argentina and Chile. Thanks to this, the company has significantly increased vineyard area and increased production volumes.
Soil and grape
Modern vineyards in Bardo are located on several sites:
- in the squares near the village of Saint-Estef;
- in the territories west of the estate, on the Carryuad plateau;
- directly next to the castle, on the hillsides.
These vineyards have poor soils, consisting of a mixture of gravel and fine sandstone, based on a thick limestone formation. Due to the scarcity of soil, the yield here is quite low, but the concentration of various substances is very high. All this affects the richness and complexity of the bouquet of wines.
Today, the following grapevine varieties are grown on the farm:
- Cabernet Sauvignon - grows by about 70% of the area;
- Merlot - Âź vineyards;
- Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, in very small quantities.
The world famous red wine from France - Château Lafite-Rothschild is made only from berries harvested from vines older than 30 years. There is also the La Graviere sector, where the vines are over 100 years old, and several sites with more âyoungâ ones are 80-year-olds.
How do they make wine?
In the Lafite estate, in order to maintain the integrity and uniqueness of the taste of grapes from each plot, it is fermented in separate tanks.
For three to four weeks, the wort wanders in wooden vats, irrigating the pulp and facilitating the transition from it of aromatic and extractive compounds, minerals and polysaccharides to the produced wine. At the end of this stage, the resulting composition is tasted and poured into vats for malolactic fermentation, or, as it is also called, malolactic fermentation, which helps to soften the taste and reduce acidity. Portions of young wine are poured from vats into tanks. In March, before the drinks are bottled in barrels, assembly is carried out. This is a mix of young wines made from grapes of the same variety, but grown in different areas. For 18 - 20 months, barrels are placed in the cellar for aging wine, and then it is bottled.
âFirstâ and âsecondâ wine
The main, or âfirst,â Rothschild Lafite wine is the Château Lafite-Rothschild, created back in 1815. Its composition, depending on the crop, includes 80 - 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5 - 20% Merlot, and all this can be supplemented by a small amount of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. This dense, as experts say, âin the bodyâ wine is produced annually from 90,000 to 145,000 bottles, which is why the price at Chateau Lafite is always kept at a very high level.
The "second" wine of this French winery - Carruades de Lafite, almost until the end of the last century, was known as Moulin des Carruades. They produce it only from grapes harvested from the vines of the Carryuad plateau. At its core, depending on the yield, are Merlot (30 - 50%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (50 - 70%), as well as up to 5% Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Unlike the âfirstâ wine, the âsecondâ is aged for about 18 months in both new and two-year oak barrels. About 180,000 bottles are produced per year.
Very expensive and tasteful ...
Outstanding years (millesim) of Château Lafite of the past and present centuries, worth 100 out of 100 possible points, the world-famous expert Robert Parker named: 1982th, 1986th, 1990th, 1996th, 2000th and 2003th. Despite the fact that the Chateau Lafitte 1963 is not on this list, its price is high - from 85,000 Russian rubles and higher. That's just to find it is almost impossible, if only lucky to buy at some auction.