Very good deep red color. Complex aromas of black cherry, currant, chocolate, herbs, licorice and tobacco leaf. Fairly sweet and dense on the palate, with very good concentration and firm acidity for the year. This is aged in 100% new oak, but the wood is very much in the background. Finishes very long and subtle, with excellent grip and a suggestion of earthy terroir

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This for me was the most 'Lafite' wine of the evening, and showed none of the weakness of some 1997s. Amazingly deep ruby. Lift and race. Real racehorse thoroughbred qualities. That lovely Lafite ballerina thing - all charm without any weakeness. Long with just a hint of gunpowder. Just lovely: complete and long. Clever old dining-club committee bought it in 2002 for just £53 a bottle when it would cost £700 a bottle to replace it now.

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Only 26% of the crop made it into the final blend, resulting in only 15,000 cases of the 1997 Lafite-Rothschild. Readers should not ignore this wine because of the negative press surrounding the 1997 vintage. It boasts an opaque dense purple color in addition to a gorgeously sweet, expansive perfume of cedar wood, black currants, lead pencil, and minerals. What follows is a fat mid-palate, medium body, explosive fruit and richness, soft tannin, and a velvety texture. It is a beautiful, compelling Lafite-Rothschild that can be drunk young, yet promises to evolve for 15+ years. Although one of the most forward Lafites ever tasted, it is all the more captivating because of this characteristic. Don't miss it!

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Wonderfully complex on the nose, with licorice, spice, berry and tobacco character. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins and a delicious finish.

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Elegant, restrained Bordeaux. Subtle fruit with chalkiness and earthiness. Pleasant.