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Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc 2019

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pessac-Léognan
ColourWhite
TypeStill
Grape VarietySauvignon Blanc/Semillon

11 hectares at Smith Haut Lafitte are planted with white varieties - 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sauvignon Gris and 5% Semillon. A top performer in recent vintages. In 2018 the production is down by 50%.

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château Smith Haut Lafitte

Label

Tasting Notes

The 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc has turned out very well in bottle, reflecting the estate's volition to craft more structured, age-worthy whites. Offering up aromas of gooseberry, nectarine, mint and lemongrass mingled with hints of pastry cream, almond paste and smoke, it's full-bodied, satiny and incisive, with a textural attack that segues into a fleshy but promisingly tightly wound mid-palate, concluding with a saline finish. As usual, the blend features a small percentage of Sauvignon Gris, which brings more dry extract to the ensemble. Drink Date 2021 - 2035

95
William Kelley, RobertParker.com (April 2022), April 2022

The 2019 Smith Haut-Lafitte Blanc has a taut and focused bouquet with mineral-rich citrus fruit that gains intensity with aeration. The palate is well-balanced with fine acidity, quite intense with Clementine, orange rind and a touch of spice. Lots of extract on the finish with impressive length. Quite delicious. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting. Drink 2025-2042.

94
Neal Martin, vinous.com (Southwold), February 2023

The slick 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte is already a delight. Glossy sweet spices blend with passion flower and poached pear. The palate is plump with no hard edges, layering seductive ripe fruit and cream together with sweet tpice. Despite the generosity there is ample, bright acidity to hold everything together. Waxy, long and vibrant through to the finish, this is an impressive showing that is already drinking well.

94+
Thomas Parker MW, Farr Vintners, November 2021

Aromas of dried apples, pears and peaches with crushed stones. Fresh flowers, such as lilacs. Full-bodied with layers of fruit and a fresh, creamy palate that continues on for minutes. A refined, precise, and polished Smith. Tight at the end. Needs two or three years to open.

97
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, February 2022

The 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is a blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sauvignon Gris, and 5% Semillon. On swirling, evocative notes of Bosc pears, ripe apples, and honeysuckle emerge, followed by wafts of yuzu and crushed rocks. The medium to full-bodied palate is multi-layered and intense, with exciting tension and fantastic length.

96
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, May 2023

Always a dry white that showcases the possibilities of this style in Bordeaux, this is an excellent wine with grip and power, savoury white pear and liqourice on the opening beats, taut yet balanced, widens out in the palate to show creamy saffron-laced nectarine and peach. Fabien Teitgen technical director. In organic conversion. Harvest from August 27 for the whites.

96
Jane Anson, JaneAnson.com, April 2022

Poached pear, passion fruit and sweet spice on this ripe and opulent nose. The palate shows layers of sweet and toasty oak but an equal intensity of rich, tangy fruit at the core. Tangerine, grapefruit and waxy lemons are all on show and bring some freshness with zippy acidity. This is a sweetly spiced, modern but fine example of white Bordeaux.

93/95
Farr Vintners, Farr Tasting, June 2020

One of my favorite whites from the region is the 2019 Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, which is mostly Sauvignon Blanc blended with a splash of Sauvignon Gris and Semillon. Textbook notes of honeyed lemon, melon, caramelized grapefruit, and orange blossom give way to a medium to full-bodied, ripe, seamless white that brings solid richness as well as a lively, racy quality that keeps you coming back to the glass. Drink this beautiful white over the coming 15-20 years.

96
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, April 2022
Read more tasting notes...

The 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is almost identical to the sample bottle that I received last year. On the nose, mirabelle, orange blossom, jasmine and wild peach scents burst from the glass, then gain more refinement with air. The palate is very well balanced, with superb acidity that cuts through the concentrated flavors of pineapple, tangerine, white peach, and just the right amount of bitterness on the finish to bring you back for another sip. This is an excellent Smith Haut Lafitte that should age well over the next 20+ years. 2024 - 2048

95
Neal Martin, vinous.com, February 2022

The 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc has a perfumed bouquet with citrus lemon, red apples, yellow plum and jasmine bursting from the glass. The oak here is wonderfully assimilated. The palate is medium-bodied with a perfect bead of acidity. It is not the most complex white Smith Haut Lafitte that I have tasted, yet it is full of tension with subtle spicy notes of ginger and lemongrass that enliven the persistent finish. There is a brightness and sophistication to this wine that is very persuasive. Superb. Tasted twice.

94/96
Neal Martin, vinous.com, June 2020

A full-bodied, layered white with dried apples, pears and cream. Beautiful, very upfront and plush already. Love the richness and precision.

96/97
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, May 2020

The 2019 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is a blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sauvignon Gris, and 5% Semillon. It slowly grows in the glass to offer a core of fresh peaches and pears with underlying hints of pineapple, cedar, green mango, and orange blossoms with a touch of shaved ginger. The medium to full-bodied palate is understated with lots of nuances to the stone-fruit and citrus layers and a satiny texture, finishing long.

96
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, May 2022

The blend this year is 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sauvignon Gris and 5% Sémillon, fermented in French oak, 50% new, within which it will age for 12 months on lees with batonnage. The Smith Haut Lafitte 2019 Blanc has a nose that unfolds in stages—offering intense white grapefruit, green mango, yuzu and orange blossoms scents to begin, giving way to hints of coriander seed, turmeric, shaved almonds and cedar chest with wafts of baking bread and beeswax coming through after some coaxing. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is wonderfully opulent with layers of citrus, stone fruit and savory flavors and a seductive oiliness to the texture, finishing very long and fantastically refreshing. Wow-o-WOW, that is good!

96/98+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (2019 Borde), June 2020

A tender caress of smoke on the opening beats before gathering pace and jumping out of the glass. It continues to build focus, density and character through the palate, showcasing stone and citrus fruits, with a scrape of slate, flint and graphite that grip on and close down on the finish. Brilliant, a serious white wine that always manages to seduce. If you are planning to drink this soon I recommend a good few hours in a carafe first. 50% new oak. 55% of overall production.

96
Jane Anson, JaneAnson.com, January 2022
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.