Carruades de Lafite - Pauillac 2009 6b11bd6ba9341f0271941e7df664d056

Wine Advocate

93 / 100

byNeal Martinthe1/1/2013

Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. This is a great performance for a Second wine that, let us be honest, 15 years ago was looked down upon and sold cheaply. Here, the 2009 has a very ripe bouquet with breezy dark black plum and boysenberry fruit mingling with orange rind, a touch of bacon fat and even a hint of mango sorbet. The palate is full-bodied with succulent, grippy tannins. There is great weight and volume to this wine, although the acidity keeps everything in check. Smooth and harmonious, turning chalkier in texture towards the finish, this is a complex 2009 Pauillac that should age well. Tasted January 2013.

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

89 / 100

byStephen Tanzerthe7/31/2012

Bright ruby-red. Open-knit, fruity nose offers plenty of charm to its strawberry, blackcurrant and floral aromas. Fresh and juicy on the palate, with red cherry and fresh blackcurrant flavors complicated by flinty and floral nuances. This easygoing, fragrant Carruades is hard to resist drinking up right now. 89(+?) points

Wine Spectator

92 / 100

byJames Molesworththe3/31/2012

This has a lightly firm coating of cocoa powder and roasted cedar, with the core of red and black currant and fig paste held at bay for now. Stays taut through the finish, but good cut and weight and an alluring tobacco note make this worth waiting out. Best from 2014 through 2024. –JM

Wine Advocate

93 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe2/29/2012

Of course, the wine to buy in order to get a look at the Lafite Rothschild style and personality is their second wine, Carruades de Lafite, which has become very fashionable in Asia, causing the prices to soar. A very strong effort, the 2009 Carruades de Lafite may be the finest Carruades since the 2003. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot and tiny amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it reveals lots of sweet cassis intermixed with subtle smoke and forest floor, undeniable lusciousness and full-bodied hedonism. The wood component is pushed to the background, and the wine is extremely viscous, round and delicious. Additional complexity should continue to emerge over the next decade and this 2009 should keep for 20-30 years.

Jamessuckling.com

95 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe2/15/2012

Currants and blackberries on the nose. Spicy and intense undertones. Full body, with juicy fruit and a soft, very silky texture and a long, long finish. Polished and very pretty. Best Carraudes ever. Try in 2018.

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

86-89 / 100

byIan D'Agatathe6/30/2010

(a blend of 51% cabernet sauvignon, 42% merlot, 5% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot; 13.5% alcohol; 55% of the total crop) Bright ruby-red. Delicious fruit-forward nose is remarkably charming in its strawberry, blackcurrant and smoky plum aromas. Then fresh and juicy on the palate, with flavors similar to the aromas and hints of flint and black pepper on the long, fruity, mineral-tinged finish. A charming Carruades that should offer immense drinking appeal during the first six to eight years of its life in bottle. Carruades is made from young vines on a north-exposed parcel close to the main chateau building, and from some younger, high-quality vines in the heart of the Lafite vineyard. While these latter centrally located vines are currently too young to be used for the grand vin, says Chevallier, "they have greatness written all over them. And when the grapes are as fully ripe as they were in '09, Carruades is a really lovely wine."

Le Figaro

93-95 / 100

byBernard Burtschythe6/30/2010

Second vin de Lafite-Rothschild. Un vin souple et d’une belle élégance, très joliment construit. 50 % cabernet-sauvignon, 42 % merlot, 8 % petit-verdot et cabernet-franc.

timatkin.com

94 / 100

byTim Atkin MWthe6/30/2010

13.5% alcohol. 50.6CS, 42.2M. 2.2PV, 5CF As at Latour, the quality of the second wine is testament to the brilliance of the grand vin in 2009. This is a very elegant claret: aromatic and complete with subtle oak, fragrant redcurrant and raspberry fruit, silky, fine-grained tannins and a long, stylish finish. The price (at least on the secondary market) may well go unjustifiably bonkers, but the wine is still excellent. 10+ years.

Le Point

16 / 20

byJacques Dupontthe5/6/2010

50,6% cabernet sauvignon, 42,2% merlot, 5% cabernet franc, 2,2% petit verdot. Fruits noirs, mûre, très rond, très merlot, un peu fruits confits, bien rond, moelleux, gourmand. O=2014 G= 10 ans

Falstaff

91-93 / 100

byPeter Moserthe4/30/2010

Kirschen, Weichseln, feine dunkle Frucht, Gewürzanklänge, zart nach Karamell. Süße Textur, Dörrzwetschken, elegant und rund, feine Säurestruktur, zarter Powidl im Finish, vielseitiger Speisenbegleiter.

TAST

16,5 / 20

by Bettane & Desseauvethe4/30/2010

Beaucoup de souplesse dans la texture, saveur de raisin mûr, pas d’extraction exagérée, beaucoup d’agrément mais le vin n’égale certainement pas quelques-uns de ses pairs de Saint-Julien ou Margaux.

Wine Advocate

89-91 / 100

byNeal Martinthe4/30/2010

A blend of 50.6% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42.4% Merlot, 2.2% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc, the Carruades has a refined, very well delineated bouquet of blackberry, a touch of plum, Mirabelle, cedar and smoke. The palate is medium-bodied, fine tannins, smooth and sensuous, not a powerful Carruades, more approachable than previous vintages, the tannins a little softer and smoother. Good length. Very fine…but it does not exceed expectations. Tasted March 2010.

Wine Enthusiast

91-93 / 100

byRoger Vossthe4/30/2010

Very soft wine, with ripe Merlot dominant. There is a rich character along with fresh tannins, very juicy, licorice and big, firm fruits.

Wein Wisser

17 / 20

byRené Gabrielthe4/30/2010

Tiefes Purpur. Florales Bouquet, aromatisch, mit dunklen Hölzern, Backpflaumen und etwas Tabak, zeigt eine schöne Tiefe. Nobler Gaumen, feine Tannine, im Extrakt eine gewisse Schwarzschokobitterkeit sowie Pflaumenschalen aufweisend, zeigt sich klassisch und ohne viel Emotionen. Zweifellos ein sehr guter Pauillac, aber seit ein paar Jahren sind die Carruades vom Preis her im Markt völlig abgehoben. Also lohnt es sich nicht, danach zu suchen, denn in Pauillac gibt es eine gute Handvoll genialer Alternativen – sogar unter den Grands Vins. 2014–2027

Wine Advocate

92-94 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe4/28/2010

The best Carruades de Lafite I have ever tasted is the 2009. Composed of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, 55% of the crop was included in this second wine. It is an atypically powerful Carruades with slightly higher alcohol than usual as well as considerable structure. There are plenty of creme de cassis and crushed rock notes as well as a subtle wood component, and super intensity and lushness. It is an amazing effort! For technocrats, Lafite began its harvest on September 23 and finished on October 8. (Tasted once.) (92-94+*) points

Periodic Review of Wine

93-95 / 100

byAlan Duranthe4/28/2010

Another remarkable achievement from the Lafite brand. The opaque ruby-purple tinged 2009 boasts some amazing perfumes of stone-dust, crème de cassis, spice-mix, spilled-ink, and balsamic juices. It is so broad and concentrated with gorgeous savories of fruit and a full-body, yet, delicately pin-pointed and beautifully driven on the palate. This is beautiful thanks to the flavor and finessed style. Perhaps the finest Carruades I have ever tasted and certainly capable of lasting 30-35 years. Fabulous wine! Maturity period 2016-2040.

Wine Spectator

89-92 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe4/9/2010

Sweet berry and currant on the nose, with hints of cedar and sandalwood. Full-bodied, with wonderful milk ciocolate and berry character. Long and supersilky. Love the balance to this. Slightly green tea aromas and flavors at the finish hold me back a little.

Decanter Magazine

17.5 / 20

bySteven Spurrierthe4/9/2010

Dense red, fine fragrant red/black fruits, firm and elegant structure, restrained, almost serious wine that promises a good future. Drink 2015-22.

Jancis Robinson

17 / 20

byJancis Robinsonthe4/7/2010

55% of the crop. 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, 5% Cabernet Franc. Very deep crimson with a sliglty pale rim. And lots of blue in it – a bit of press wine? Sumptuous nose already. Lightly inky start but then luscious texture and so round and polished. Great freshness and enormous polish, Doesn't taste as though there was lots of press wine in here. Great round stuff. Just a little kick at the end and a very slight hole towards the very end of the palate – otherwise fabissimo. But quite early maturing? Drink 2015-2025