Full ruby-red with a purple tinge. Crushed cassis, blackberry, violet, cedar and graphite on the very fresh, complex nose. Juicy, spicy and penetrating, with lovely harmonious acids providing great clarity and cut to the black fruit and graphite flavors. Still youthfully closed and very mineral. Finishes pure and extremely long, with very fine tannins. This may yet turn out to be the wine of the vintage, but it will require patience.

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Cabernet Sauvignon 83%, Merlot just 13%.Subtle purplish crimson. Sumptuous nose - almost Mouton-like (whereas Mouton seems to be making a more Lafite-like wine in 2008). Richer and riper than some earlier vintages of Lafite with even a hint of sweetness. Medium tannins and a dry finish but not the ballerina-like lift that I associate with Lafite. Not much lift or real aromatic interest - but perhaps we were too hurried through the tasting room to appreciate its finer points? Both Julia and Steven Spurrier tasting alongside me were more enthusiastic.

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The 2008 Lafite Rothschild is one of the most profound young wines I have ever tasted. From a taster's perspective, it is reminiscent of a blend of the 1996 and 2003, but when you compare those vintages analytically, that makes no sense whatsoever. Representing only 40% of the production, this blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc boasts an opaque ruby/purple color (one of the darkest Lafites I have seen in 30 years) as well as an extraordinary, blockbuster aromatic profile of lead pencil shavings, forest floor, black fruits, licorice, and a hint of unsmoked, high-class cigar tobacco. In the mouth, a massive richness is accompanied by a freshness, delineation, nuance, delicacy, and mind-boggling density. Even after three decades of tasting, I am still astonished when tasting such a prodigious wine as this. Full, inky, and rich with creme de cassis and spice box characteristics as well as a length that I stopped measuring after a minute, the wine reveals a sweetness to the tannin and an opulence to the fruit that suggests a hot, sunny vintage, but again, that was not the case. There wasn't a great deal of heat, but there was more sunshine than the negative press reported at the beginning of September. This is a great, great wine. The harvest at Lafite took place between October 1-7 for the Merlot grapes, the Cabernet Franc was picked in mid-October, and the Cabernet Sauvignon between October 7-14 - an unbelievably late harvest for this estate. This wine should evolve for 30-40 years and last 50 or more. As I have indicated before, Lafite's second wine is now one of Bordeaux's finest second wines, and is made very much in the Lafite style.

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Supple and harmonious already, with inviting, almost plush blackberry, plum and fig fruit notes carried by fine-grained, lightly cedary structure. Black tea and sandalwood flash on the finish. Poised now, but has the stuffing for more time in bottle.

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2008 Barrel sample @ Chateau. All is in control. A pure core of beautifully ripe blueberries, black berries and cassis, picked up on the nose and reinforced in the mid-palate after a soft, round and delicious tip-in. Graphite and leather notes accompany the ripe fruit as great nuances at the finish, which stretches to 50+ seconds. Tannins are smooth, elegant, and well controlled, and still persistent at this stage. Sweet fruit echoes to the end, and remains beautifully balanced. It is not "rich" but it is intensely concentrated and embraces you. Let it sit in the glass 20+ minutes and things really develop - gaining aromatic intensity of cassis, while the body gains weight and power. Concentrated and becoming full-bodied. Beautiful wine at En Primeur. 93-96 points. 83% CS, 13% M, 4% CF. Beautiful tasting room was overrun with all the top Decanter people, laptops deployed. They were in and out fast. (174 views)