JD
99
Jeb Dunnuck
Rating (97 - 99) The 2022 Château Lafite-Rothschild is based on 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot that was harvested between the 31st of August and the 24th of September. It's a richer, more opulent wine compared to the more classic 2020 (although the pH is higher in the 2020) and has a deep, full-bodied, concentrated profile as well as classic Lafite aromatics of spicy red and black fruits, freshly sharpened pencils, graphite, and tobacco. Deep, rich, and concentrated, it nevertheless stays pure and flawlessly balanced, with ample, ripe tannins and a great finish. It's going to have some up-front appeal by Lafite standards but should still require a decade of bottle age. Director Eric Koher compares this to the 2005, but this modern-day clone of the 1959 is one of the most powerful, concentrated Lafites I've tasted. Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck, Issue date: May 2023. Drinking window: N/A.
RP
97
Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Rating (95 - 97) A blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2022 Lafite Rothschild unwinds in the glass with aromas of dark berries, cassis, sweet soils tones, cigar box and lilac. Medium to full-bodied, it's the most tensile of the first growths this year, with a layered, concentrated but youthfully introverted mid-palate, lively acids and a long, saline finish. It checks in at a rather high pH of 3.85, which belies its incisive profile, from a harvest that extended from August 31 to September 24. Reviewed by: William Kelley, Issue date: April 2023. Drinking window: N/A.
V
98
Vinous
Rating (96 - 98) The 2022 Lafite Rothschild is shaping up to be one of the wines of the vintage. All of the Lafite signatures are present, but what impresses most about the 2022 is its poise, its stature. Readers will find a regal, statuesque Lafite built for serious aging. There's tons of fruit and tannin, all masterfully put together. A modern-day classic. Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni, Issue date: April 2023. Drinking window: 2032 - 2062.