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A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, this wine represents only 34% of Lafite’s total harvest. In a less than perfect Medoc vintage, it has been spectacular since birth, putting on more weight and flesh over the last year. This opaque purple-colored 1998 is close to perfection. The spectacular nose of lead pencil, smoky, mineral, and black currant fruit soars majestically from the glass. The wine is elegant yet profoundly rich, revealing the essence of Lafite’s character. The tannin is sweet, and the wine is spectacularly layered yet never heavy. The finish is sweet, super-rich, yet impeccably balanced and long (50+ seconds). Anticipated maturity: 2007-2035.Robert Parker | 98 RPThe 1998 Lafite-Rothschild is served from double magnum directly from the château reserves, in fact with the man who made it sitting opposite me – Charles Chevalier. I must admit to being quite amazed how well this shows at 20-years of age, trouncing all the other First Growths except Haut-Brion. Lucid in colour, it has a vivid bouquet of pure blackberry, blueberry, vanilla and graphite, perhaps just a little uncharacteristically showy in style, but beautifully defined and intense. The palate is perfectly balanced with layers of ripe black fruit, perfectly pitched acidity and a silky smooth texture that renders this utterly seductive. It is almost too good for me to recommend cellaring longer. Whatever...it is a sublime Lafite-Rothschild that on this showing, may well challenge the supremacy of the 1996. Tasted at the Académie du Vin dinner in Bordeaux.Vinous Media | 96 VMAmazing aromas of crushed blackberries, toasted oak and currant, spices. Really a great nose. Full-bodied, with round and velvety tannins and a long, long finish. It lasts for minutes on the palate. Superb. Best wine of the Médoc, without a doubt.--’88/’98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Best after 2011. 21,665 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSNo written review provided. | 94 W&SEasy vintage until September, when conditions in the Médoc particularly became humid, which meant accelerating the harvest (it was one of those years when Lafite benefitted enormously from its ability to ramp up a bigger-than-expected team of pickers). Salin still calls this a lunch wine, because of its supple freshness, its balance that would work so perfectly with food.The vintage was a showcase for Bordeaux on the Right Bank, where it was considered great from the start. The Medoc and Graves were less well received at the time, but are ripe for rediscovering now. This still has a lovely deep ruby red colour, and on both the nose and palate you are getting to secondary aromas, a walk in the forest, mushrooms, cedars, heather, game – these are flavours you just don’t get in young wines, and amply reward the patience of holding bottles back. The surprise, and the Lafite signature, comes in its vibrancy, in its huge persistency and in the lift on the finish.Decanter | 94 DEC

(Château Latour, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pauillac, Bordeaux, France, Red) As with many of the wines from 1998 that I have tasted recently, the Latour was surprisingly open and approachable. Today the wine has a smoky, almost roasted nose with black plum and fig fruit, hints of smoke, leather, and an undercurrent of ground coffee. The texture is surprisingly open and soft but not falling apart. It is drinking well today and doubtless will hold for another 10 to 15 years but is probably not one for long-term ageing. The spring and the growing season were hot and dry, and although there was rain at harvest the grapes were able to resist rot and dilution due to their thick skins. (Drink between 2022-2042)Decanter | 96 DECNo written review provided. | 96 W&SThe 1998 Latour was in fact the first vintage I ever tasted en primeur at the château. It was an early vintage after budburst on 20 March and the picking began on 20 September until 5 October, the Grand Vin a blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot (compared to around 9% these days), 4% Cabernet Franc 1% Petit Verdot. It has an open-knit bouquet with notes of black fruit, iron, undergrowth and autumn leaves. You cannot help noticing its rusticity compared to present-day Latour. The palate is medium-bodied, well balanced, a tang of soy marking the entry, brambly red berry fruit and an almost Graves-like, tertiary, slightly short finish. It is a mid-weight Latour, one that I cannot envisage improving further but it will cruise at this level for the next decade. Tasted at the château.Vinous Media | 92 VMNot a blockbuster, the 1998 possesses a dark garnet/purple color in addition to a complex bouquet of underbrush, cedar, walnuts, and licorice-tinged black currants. Although medium to full-bodied and moderately tannic, it lacks the expansiveness in the mid-palate necessary to be truly great. Moreover, the tannin is slightly aggressive, although that is hardly unusual in such a young Latour. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2030.Robert Parker | 90 RPPlenty of raspberry, dark chocolate and mint on the nose. Full-bodied, with licorice and sweet tobacco character and a cedar undertone. Outstanding. Pop the cork.--’88/’98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Drink now. 19,165 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Composed of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc, the 1998 Mouton Rothschild is deep garnet-brick in color with lovely crème de cassis, dried roses, hoisin and baking spice notes with underlying notions of dried cherries and mulberries plus touches of wood smoke, incense and forest floor. Medium to full-bodied and packed with rich fruit framed by firm, chewy tannins, it is stacked with complex, evolving flavors and finishes with incredibly long-lasting perfumed notes. According to winemaker Philippe Dhalluin, this needs about three hours of decanting at this stage. I simply love the place this wine is in right now, possessing plenty of mature, tertiary characters yet still sporting bags of fruit. It won’t be fading anytime soon either and should cellar nicely for 20-25+ more years.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPFrom a vintage that was slightly more challenging for the Left Bank with its later-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon, the 1998 Mouton Rothschild is nevertheless a terrific wine that has beautiful sweetness and depth in its crème de cassis, new saddle leather, leafy herbs, and exotic spice-laced around and flavors. With sweet tannins, terrific mid-palate depth, and a great finish, it’s drinking great today but should age at a glacial pace and keep for another 30 years. The 1998 is blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc.Jeb Dunnuck | 96 JDIn his Wine Buyer’s Guide to France, Robert Parker felt this was the finest Mouton since 1986. At Vivat Bacchus, this was the most variable wine of the tasting, with one bottled corked, two distinctly edgy and a little green. The best bottle (described here) was much better. Deep and intensely purple in colour, there is still plenty of concentration and potential for this Mouton to blossom further. Ripe red/black cherry aromas combined with warm, spicy oak. The issues at harvest time are most evident on the palate with slightly hard, furry tannins. Harvested 28 September to 6 October. 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc. 57% of production used for the Grand Vin. Drinking Window 2022 - 2030.Decanter | 94 DECNo written review provided. | 94 W&SThe 1998 Mouton Rothschild is another wine that I had not tasted for several years. It is a blend of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. Compared directly with the 1988, there is clearly some improvement for the bouquet is fresher with greater complexity - blackberry, cedar, a spring of fresh mint and a little juniper berry for good measure. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannin. Like many Pauillac 1998s, this feels quite structured and masculine, but at least there is adequate fruit tucked in just behind. It segues into a rather ferrous last third, fresh and precise with a sustained finish. Although it lags behind more recent vintages under Dhalluin, it appears to be at its peak after 20 years and should remain there for another decade. Tasted at the château.Vinous Media | 92 VMBlackberry and violets on the nose, with hints of roses. Sweet tobacco too. Full-bodied, with a solid core of fruit and round tannins. A little tight and reserved now. Give it time.--’88/’98 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2008). Best after 2011. 22,915 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WSThis is spicy and peppery with dried fruits and currants. It’s full and velvety on the palate, showing pretty berries and toasted coffee beans. Long, long finish.James Suckling | 91 JS

Readers looking for a modern day version of Latour’s magnificent 1962 or 1971 should check out the sensational 1999 Latour. It is a big, concentrated offering, exhibiting a dense ruby/purple color, and a classic nose of minerals, black currants, leather, and vanilla. The wine is long, ripe, and medium-bodied, with high levels of sweet tannin. This surprisingly full, concentrated 1999 should be drinkable in 5-6 years; it will last for three decades.Robert Parker | 94 RPFocused and fresh, with milk chocolate and berry aromas. Subtle and refined on the nose. Full-bodied and very elegant, featuring a solid core of ultrafine tannins and a long, long finish. So much finesse here. Still tight, needing time in the bottle to open. No longer big, this is in just the right proportions for the vintage.--’89/’99 Bordeaux blind retrospective (2009). Best after 2012. 13,330 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WSThe 1999 Latour is a vintage that I have not encountered for four or five years. It has a pH of 3.80 and a yield of 38hl/ha, representing 58% of the total crop. Interestingly, this includes 14% vin de presse compared to the 9 to 10% used nowadays. It has a classic Latour bouquet of blackberry, pencil box and undergrowth aromas, quite strict and conservative in style, and fairly intense but not firing on all cylinders; orange zest aromas evolve gradually. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin and nicely detailed, offering blackberry, black truffle, pencil shavings and a touch of spice toward the finish, which shows more grip and density than the 1989 Latour tasted alongside, probably because of that pressed wine. This is beginning to reach its drinking plateau, although judging by this showing it will give another two decades of drinking pleasure. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the estate.Vinous Media | 92 VM

The nose is fresh, bright, and dense. With aromas of violets, minerals, spices, cool stones, mint, dark fruits, and plum skins, this is beautiful. Very much still a baby right now, it needs much more time. This is a wine for the next generation. Finesse and elegance, truly a wine that makes you contemplate life. This is not about power, there is really nothing like it. 93% Cabernet Sauvignon. Do not even think about touching this for another ten years, 2020. 15+25+25+35. Find the wineJames Suckling | 100 JSPerhaps of all the first growths in the totally un-classic 2000, this retains most of the classic Bordeaux. It is certainly almost black in color, while the new wood flavors are very present. But it shows an impressive restraint, leaving the power of the wine to be revealed over the years rather than immediately. This could well be the longest-lived of the Pauillac first growths.Wine Enthusiast | 99 WESince I gave this wine a perfect score, I suppose some could see this as a downgrade. I found everything still there for a perfect rating, but I was just struck by how tight and backward the wine was. A blend of 93.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot, the wine still has a dark ruby/purple color and an extraordinarily youthful nose of graphite, black currants, sweet, unsmoked cigar tobacco, and flowers. The wine is rich, medium to full-bodied, but has that ethereal elegance and purity that is always Lafite. I originally predicted that it would first reach maturity in 2011, but I would push that back by 5-7 years now, although it has 50-60 years of life in front of it. Owners of this beauty are probably best advised to forget it for 5 years. Tasted next to a 1996 several days after the 2000 tasting, the 1996, which is a perfect wine, was far closer to full maturity than the 2000.Robert Parker | 98+ RPThe 2000 Lafite-Rothschild is utterly sublime. Delicate, sensual and wonderfully nuanced, the 2000 is majestic. The purity of the fruit is simply striking.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGThis is remarkably young, with a deep well of succulent black currant, fig and blackberry fruit notes that feel 10 years younger than most peers, carried by wave upon wave of velvety tannins. Despite the density and heft, there’s glorious length and finesse too, with alluring black tea, smoldering charcoal and warm paving stone notes just starting to emerge. Awesome wine.--Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Best from 2018 through 2043. 16,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 98 WSA baby, still barely evolved at 20 years old, perhaps the slowest out of the block of all Five Firsts at this point in their lives. Savoury black fruits, elegant yet concentrated, extremely Cabernet and extremely Lafite. The power comes slowly, expanding through the palate to show graphite, pencil shavings, cigar smoke, all with firm acidities and a fantastic grip. 46% of the overall crop went into this wine in the 2000 vintage. A brilliant example of the success at Lafite under the longtime triumvirate of owner Baron Éric de Rothschild, CEO Christophe Salin and estate director Charles Chevallier. Drinking Window 2020 - 2045.Decanter | 98 DECNo written review provided. | 95 W&S

Latour has made truly great wines in the past two decades—and this is one of the best. It has fabulous aromas of black truffles, currants, raspberry and dried flowers. Mind-blowing on the palate, it’s an emotional and soulful red.James Suckling | 100 JSThe 2000 Latour is very deep in color. The nose is backward and demands coaxing from the glass, eventually revealing intense black fruit, cedar, graphite and very subtle Japanese nori aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with an arching structure that grips the mouth. The tannins are a little bolder than the 2001. This unfolds swirl by swirl, with hints of licorice emerging with time, and fanning out audaciously on the finish.Vinous Media | 99 VMThe fruit here is still very much in the primary phase, with a decidedly racy feel to the raspberry coulis, cassis and blackberry reduction notes that are streaked with violet, iron and graphite flavors. The superlong finish alternates between a tug of sweet earth and a velvety feel, as the fruit and grip are still melding together, but there’s so much vivacity here, there’s no concern with waiting it out. The wait may be a while though. Rather stunning that this can separate itself so clearly from the rest of 2000’s high-class field.--Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Best from 2020 through 2040. 14,167 cases made.Wine Spectator | 99 WS(Château Latour, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pauillac, Bordeaux, France, Red) Dense and complex, this shows layers of dark fruit with aromas of plum, fig and blackcurrant overlaid with spice, leather and earth. It is not as expressive as the 2001 vintage now, but it is more substantial, almost massive. There was rain at Latour on 19th September, which refreshed the grapes, and the team waited until 22nd September to start with the Merlot. The final blend is 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. It is just beginning to open now and should age gracefully for another 30 or 40 years. (Drink between 2022-2062)Decanter | 99 DECThe 2000 Latour (a relatively abundant 14,000 cases compared to what they produced in 2009, 2008, or 2005) is “packed and stacked.” The extremely rich, black/purple color to the rim is followed by a wine with some subtle smoke, loads of minerals, a hint of vanilla, and plenty of creme de cassis as well as roasted meat and a slight scorched earth character. Broad, savory, and rich, the wine seems to be about 5 years away from full maturity and should drink well for at least 40-50 more years. A great effort, probably eclipsed only by 2003 and 2009.Robert Parker | 98 RPThis is such an expressive wine, with elegance a major factor in its character. It is certainly huge, rich and dense. But there is much more to it. You can peel layers of fruit and tannins away, and still never get to the end of the wine’s complexity. At every stage of its life, it will reveal a new character, but for now it is dominated by powerful tannins and huge, black, fruit.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WENo written review provided. | 92 W&S

The 2000 Les Forts de Latour has a very perfumed and floral bouquet, beautifully defined, precise and precocious; hints of eucalyptus emerge with time. The palate is well balanced and intense, delivering black fruit laced with mint and tar. The concentrated finish gently grips the mouth. This is only just beginning to show what it can do.Vinous Media | 95 VMSome call it the second wine of the great first growth of Latour. But it’s a unique wine on its own. It shows blueberry, raspberry and other dark-berry character. It’s so round and delicious, why wait?James Suckling | 94 JSSuper enticing aromas of crushed raspberries, Indian spices and hints of vanilla. Full-bodied, with a refined and tight tannin structure and a long, refreshing finish. A beauty. Best Les Forts in years. Best after 2009. 11,665 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WSThe 2000 Les Forts de Latour is a seriously endowed wine with notes of black walnuts, black currants, crushed rock, tobacco and spice box. Full-bodied, luscious but still in need of another 2-3 years to hit full maturity, it certainly can evolve for another 15 or more years, and looks to be slightly richer and longer-lived than I originally predicted.My original ratings appear to have been dead on the money for both of these efforts from Chateau Latour.Robert Parker | 92 RP

Beginning to open magnificently, the still dense purple-colored 2000 reveals a blossoming bouquet of blackberries, cassis, graphite and pen ink. Full-bodied with velvety tannins that have resolved themselves beautifully over the last eleven years, this wine is still an adolescent, but it exhibits admirable purity, texture, mouthfeel and power combined with elegance. One of the all-time great examples of Lynch Bages, the 2000 is just beginning to drink well yet promises to last for another 20-25+ years.Robert Parker | 97 RPThis has a dense but well-defined core of currant and fig paste flavors supported by a gorgeous graphite spine. Long and authoritative, with notes of bay, pepper, leather and juniper slowly emerging on the finish. Terrific structure and integration give this a chiseled feel. No rush here.--Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Drink now through 2033.Wine Spectator | 96 WSFinally rounding the corner, the 2000 Château Lynch-Bages is mature, with classic Pauillac darker currants, lead pencil, tobacco leaf, and spice-laced aromatics. With a deep plum color and slight lightening at the edges, it’s medium to full-bodied and has a layered texture as well as integrated tannins. A classic, elegant, yet still powerful Lynch-Bages, it delivers plenty of sweet fruit and a great finish. It benefits from an hour of air and will certainly hold at this stage for another 10-15 years with no issues.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JDAnother wonderful 2000 coming out of its long sleep. Beautiful aromas of berry, tobacco, herb and spice that follow through to a full palate with round, textured tannins and lots of fruit.James Suckling | 95 JSTypical of Lynch-Bages in its sumptuous rich style, this is a resounding success for the team of Jean-Michel Cazes. With its sweet fruit, opulent but balanced wood and red and black fruit flavors, it is a wine that will develop relatively quickly but will certainly age.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WE71% cabernet sauvignon, 16% merlot, 11% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot; 5.5 g/l total acidity; 13.3% alcohol): Deep ruby-red. Knockout aromas of blackcurrant, blackberry, mocha and cedar complicated by scorched earth and tobacco. Big, ripe and dense, with flavors similar to the aromas and a seamless, rich texture. Though powerful and rich, with a sensual mouthfeel, it maintains a graceful, light-on-its-feet quality. Finishes with ripe, fine-grained tannins and excellent length. Still an infant, but clearly a great vintage for this property.Vinous Media | 94+ VMNo written review provided. | 92 W&S

Deep garnet colored with a touch of brick, the 2000 Mouton Rothschild (composed of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Merlot) boldly bursts from the glass with tantalizing Black Forest cake, dried mulberries, kirsch and blackcurrant pastilles notes plus wafts of iodine, incense, potpourri and cinnamon stick with a hint of cigar boxes. Medium to full-bodied, the palate packs in the muscular fruit, framed by firm, ripe, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with phenomenal length. This is an incredibly complex and multifaceted wine, and it’s drinking deliciously now. This said, I can’t help but feel that it is holding something back, that it still has another layer of opulence and seduction to reveal in its tight-knit fruit and solid structure. I personally can’t wait to see how this beauty will continue to unfold over the years to come.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97+ RPWith its distinctive antique bottle and gold etched label dominated by a sheep, this is definitely a move away from classic Bordeaux bottling. It is good that the wine can support the presentation. The fruit is so ripe, it almost tastes of raisins, but that sweetness is finely balanced by the dry tannins and concentrated texture. To finish, there are exotic spices, giving an almost oriental character to the long aftertaste.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEA little more open than the other four Firsts in the vintage, with undergrowth, baked earth and gentle spice alongside the truffles, smoked caramel, spice and bilberry fruits. It shows plenty of the trademark Mouton generosity and ripe tannic structure and is lusciously textured. This came in at 80% 1st wine. It wasn’t until Philippe Dhalluin arrived a few years later that production for the 1st wine would be lowered, with significantly more Petit Mouton being made (Lafite and Latour both closer to 50% 1st wine for similar sized estates). That’s not to say that you won’t be thrilled to open and drink this wine, and it will undoubtedly show that same stubborn unwillingness to fade away that the First Growths all share. 100% new oak. Drinking Window 2020 - 2050.Decanter | 96 DECNo written review provided. | 95 W&SRounded, fleshy and a bit extracted in feel, with dark plum, blackberry and fig jam flavors that flirt with a pruny edge, picking up lots of warm mocha, singed vanilla bean and ganache notes through the finish. This relies more on easy opulence than on depth or purity on the end.--Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Drink now through 2023. 20,833 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WSThe nose is very intense, super-ripe and rich, verging on jammy. Notes of leather, spices and prunes. Full-bodied, soft and beautiful with ripe tannins and a long finish. This is soft and yummy right now. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 93 JSThe 2000 Mouton-Rothschild is a vintage that famously came in an eye-catching gold-embossed bottle, though I was rather ambivalent about its quality. Now just over two decades old, it has a focused bouquet of blackberry, mint and tobacco/black truffle scents, demonstrating fine intensity if not the show-stopping complexity one might expect from a First Growth in 2000. The palate is medium-bodied, juicy and ripe, with rounded tannins and moderate acidity, but I don’t find it complex, and it doesn’t really articulate the DNA of Mouton-Rothschild or its terroir. This becomes quite feral and just a little acetic with aeration.Vinous Media | 91 VM

The 2001 Mouton-Rothschild contains 20% vin de presse and 12.6° alcohol. It has a vibrant, captivating bouquet that explodes from the glass with precocious black cherries, sous-bois, mint and a touch of Seville oranges, displaying precision and class. The medium-bodied palate shows good density and offers sappy black fruit, white pepper and just a touch of tobacco. Quite muscular for a 2001, and perhaps missing the clarity and pixelation that the next winemaker, Philippe Dhalluin, subsequently imparted. This is a thoroughly enjoyable Mouton-Rothschild, even if it is not the same pedigree as recent vintages.Vinous Media | 94 VMVery smoky, with berry, coffee and tobacco aromas. Full-bodied, with polished velvety tannins, plenty of fruit and a cedary aftertaste. Tight and compacted. This is better than the 2000 Mouton. It’s a baby 1986 Mouton. Solid and very, very fine. Persists for a long time on the palate. Best after 2009.Wine Spectator | 94 WSThis complex on the nose with black cherry, black currant and graphite aromas. It’s very fleshy on the palate with chewy tannins and lots of fruit. This is still a reserved and structured Bordeaux, but with power lurking beneath. Still a baby.James Suckling | 94 JSNo written review provided. | 91 W&S

The wine of the vintage? There are only 10,000 cases of this extraordinarily rich, dense 2002 that is as powerful as the 2003 (even the alcohol levels are nearly the same, 12.85%) . It is dark ruby/purple to the rim, with notes of English walnuts, crushed rocks, black currants, and forest floor, dense, full-bodied, and opulent, yet classic with spectacular aromatics, marvelous purity, and a full-bodied finish that lasts just over 50+ seconds. Huge richness and the sweetness of the tannin are somewhat deceptive as this wine seems set for a long life. Administrator Frederic Engerer seems to be more pleased with what Latour achieved in 2002 than in any other recent vintage. Hats off to him for an extraordinary accomplishment in a vintage that wouldn’t have been expected to produce the raw materials to achieve something at this level of quality. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2045.Robert Parker | 96 RPOne of the most pleasant surprises in this tasting, the 2002 Latour is just beginning to show the full breadth of its aromatic complexity, but it is also has more than enough depth to drink well for several decades. Tar, graphite, incense and smoke open up in the glass in a Latour that leans towards the more delicate, feminine side of things. Silky tannins add polish and creaminess through to the finish. The 2002 is surprisingly delicious today for a young Latour, but it also has the pedigree and density to age nicely for decades.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGLoads of ripe currants, licorice and toasted oak on the nose. Subtle yet impressive. Full-bodied, with a solid core of ripe fruit and chewy tannins. Big and juicy. Deep midpalate for a 2002. This is the wine of the vintage. A solid, classic Latour that needs bottle age. Best after 2012.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

The 2003 Lafite Rothschild comes as close to perfection as any of the great Lafites made over the past three decades (1982, 1986, 1996, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2010). This sensational effort came in at 12.7% natural alcohol, it is made in the style of one of this estate’s great classics, the 1959. Composed of 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it exhibits a dense ruby/purple color to the rim along with a luxurious bouquet of cedarwood, lead pencil shaving, white chocolate, cocoa and cassis. Fat, rich, opulent and full-bodied with low acidity and stunning seductiveness and complexity, this noble wine possesses a bountiful, generous, heady style. It is just coming into its plateau of maturity where it should hold for 20-25 years. This is one of the candidates for the wine of the vintage – make no mistake about that.These are two great successes in this vintage that have aged well and surprised me by their intensity and overall complexity.Robert Parker | 100 RPSpicy and rich, with a tobacco and berry character on the nose and palate I love the nose. Full bodied, with soft velvety tannins that give you so much. This goes on and on. Sexy and exciting right now, but leave this for five or six years.James Suckling | 98 JSThis is a splendid wine. Yes, it is more powerful than the usual aristocratic Lafites, but it still manages to retain a special air of great elegance and presence. The fruits are black, the tannins immensely powerful, the flavors are of black figs, dates, cocoa. At the end, there is a vibrant acidity that shows through, which promises a great life for this great wine.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEThe 2003 Lafite-Rothschild famously shrugged off the merciless heat of that infamous summer when the temperature at the estate nudge 42° Celsius. It has a lovely bouquet of black plum, pressed iris, a touch of glycerin and (for Lafite) exotic scents of blood orange. The palate is powerful and intense as you would expect. There is great depth and volume with glossy black fruit laced with orange zest, smoke and melted tar. You can almost feel the summer in this Lafite-Rothschild but unlike many of its peers, it has requisite acidity to maintain freshness and avoid cloyingness on the finish. Whilst not my pick of modern-day Lafites, I have to doff my cap because it was and still is, one of the finest Left Banks of the vintage. Tasted at the Lafite-Rothschild 150th anniversary dinner at the estate.Vinous Media | 96 VMSubtle, complex aromas of berries, licorice and currants. Full-bodied, with well-integrated tannins and a long finish. Very well-integrated wine. Lovely stuff. Wonderful length and finesse. Best after 2012. 20,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

A heady, exotic wine, the 2003 Mouton Rothschild takes hold of all the senses. The ripeness and exuberance of the year comes through in spades as this dramatic, opulent wine shows off its radiant personality. The 2003 can be enjoyed now, but it could also use another few years for the tannins to soften. Still, the 2003 is pretty hard to resist today. This is an exceptional, deeply satisfying Mouton endowed with notable richness but also exceptional balance. Hints of toffee, torrefaction and dark spices are laced into the finish. In 2003 the blend is 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, all brought in between a fairly narrow window of ten days between September 15 and 25.Antonio Galloni | 95 AGShows the heat of the vintage, as well as the slightly extracted feel of Dhalluin’s predecessor, with a hint of jamminess to the mix of raspberry, plum and fig fruit, along with melted licorice, charred cedar and singed vanilla bean accents and a very light echo of caramel through the finish. Even with all that, there’s a flash of minty freshness lurking throughout. There’s lots here, but it’s a bit atypical.--Non-blind Mouton-Rothschild vertical (March 2017). Drink now through 2031. 23,330 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSThis wine is dominated by new wood, which goes right through the big, dark fruit flavors and tannins. Very ripe cassis flavors are under this wood, waiting likely for many years before the wood flavors subside. This is very much in the modern, polished style of Mouton today, made even more pronounced by the heat of the 2003 vintage.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WETasted at Bordeaux Index’s "10-Year On" tasting in London. Comparing the Lafite-Rothschild and Latour with the Mouton-Rothschild, it is clear that it is lagging behind in terms of complexity and nuance, the growing season impinging upon the aromatics and dampening the fruit expression. The palate is medium-bodied with a supple, graphite tinged entry. It is nicely balanced but seems a little smudged towards the cedar-infused finish. This is a decent Mouton, though I prefer Latour and Lafite-Rothschild in this year. Robert Parker Neal Martin | 93 RP-NMThis has lots of phenolic character. Full-bodied and chewy with very ripe nuances. So much coffee and walnut character. A big and slightly overdone wine. Shows the extreme heat of the vintage. Drink now.James Suckling | 92 JS