1978 Château Lafite Rothschild***

The 1978 gathers force over the palate, and this is a gorgeous Lafite that is still full of pleasure. Showcases elegant, finessed tannins, with fragrant tobacco leaf, tumeric, smoke, black tea, wild strawberry and raspberry - basically a window into why this wine manages to hold such a grip on the imagination through its mix of concentration and elegance. Salivating, a wine to stretch out with over a long conversation, taking your time, enjoying the subtley and the freshness. Fully in its tertiary window, but it will stay on this easy-going plateau for another few decades. Low yields of 22.85hl/h, after a mixed summer but excellent late harvest, with the grapes coming in from October 2. New oak was inching upwards at this point from the 30% earlier in the 1970s, probably at this point somewhere around 50%.

This has a warmer, more inviting nose than the previous wine, with perhaps a little more Merlot evident? There are scents of decayed red-berried fruits with cedar and a touch of hot bricks and together they make a compelling bouquet. Certainly this has impressive definition and clarity. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy entry, well-judged acidity and very natural in style. Elegant and feminine with supple, red-berried fruits, cranberry and a touch of bitter chocolate towards the finish. This has matured very well and is a beautiful, classic Lafite. (NM)

From The Purple Notebook – Decanter/Christie’s fundraising dinner at Covent Garden. Very aromatic and lively and fresh. Quite light. 'Rather an old-fashioned wine, slightly 19th century. The only advantage it had was its acidity. It offers no resistance in any way to being drunk.' Baron Eric de Rothschild. The last of three very different expressions of Cabernet/Merlot. There would have been a logic to serving them the other way round. (JR)