Вино Шато Лафит 1870 (Chateau Lafite Rothschild 1870)

96 Points Robert Parker
Except for the 1966 and 1870 vintages of Lafite-Rothschild, these wines were poured on virgin territory on my palate. The other great classics from the last century were remarkable wines, all with original corks, and in extraordinary condition. Their age was authenticated by Michael Broadbent, who is the only person in the world to have the good fortune to have tasted these wines on several occasions. After two disappointing tastings of the immortal 1870 Lafite-Rothschild, the Rodenstock tasting finally provided me a provocative, compelling, profound bottle of this legendary wine. The color is a healthy dark garnet, and the huge nose of freshly sliced celery, mint, cedar, and cassis unfolded quickly, but held in the glass during the 30-40 minutes it remained there before it became just a mere component of my bodily fluids. The wine exhibited sweet fruit, surprising glycerin and opulence for a Lafite, and a sweet, jammy, powerful finish. It is an extraordinary wine! The notes for this wine are taken from the description of Series V - Flight A of the 1995 tasting conducted in Munich by Helga and Hardy Rodenstock.

5* Michael Broadbent
Ch Lafite One of the all time greats and, at its best, a powerhouse, massively endowed with every conceivable component. In fact, such a powerful and tannic wine that it was virtually undrinkable for half a century. Nevertheless, bottlings varied, and, as always, provenance plays a part. I have had the opportunity to taste, and drink the 1870 Lafite on sixteen occasions starting, however, with an untypical pale and astringent bottle which nevertheless, as if it was conscious of letting the side down, emitted a sweet bouquet which lingered in the glass long after it had been emptied. This was in 1966.
Unquestionably the most magnificent were (and still can be), the Coningham-bottled magnums from Glamis Castle. Of the 48 originally binned in 1878,41 magnums had remained undisturbed until I and a friendly wine merchant in Perth packed them up for a great sale at Christie’s in 1971. Naturally. to make sure that the wine was all right, I opened one at a dinner in the boardroom before the sale attended by a dozen or so wine luminaries. The cork was sound, the level high, the color so impressively deep that it could have been mistaken for a 1970; nose flawless, the bouquet blossoming in the glass. Perfect on the palate too. A lovely drink. Thank goodness the i3th Earl of Strathmore, who had originally bought it, didn’t take to it; it must have been swingingly tannic. Like the 1928 Latour, it took 50 years to become drinkable, It was in 1934 that his lunchtime host asked André Simon, the founder of the Wine and Food Society, for his first reactions to the wines. They ‘evoked memories of Berkshire’, the 1870 Lafite ‘of the Majesty of the Royal Oak’. That’s wine writing for you! No toasty new oak; no gobs of glycerin, oodles of sweet black fruits; awesome...

Then there was a bottle I opened in Sir John Thompson’s cellar at Woodperry House to see if the cork was branded. It was: ‘Pfungst 1870’. A fabulous color, still tannic (in rr,6). Later, also Bordeaux-bottled, this time by Cruse, five bottles 6mm the Ten Broeck mansion in Albany (New York), noted at Heublein pre—sale tastings in 5978 and ‘979. Purchased in 1870), the wine was still in original cases, wrapped in tissue paper on which was printed Cnsse et PUs Fthrs. Each bottle had a glass button on the shoulder embossed Chateau Lafite Grand Vin. They varied, the best being superb. Even those with mid-shoulder levels (caused by cork shrinkage) were surprisingly good. Low-shoulder: oxidised of course. Around the same time a perfect magnum from Woodperry served by Lenoir Jose at a great wine dinner in Houston, and an equally delectable bottle despite being mid-shoulder at the Overton Lafite tasting. Not all were good: an oxidised Day & Watson London bottling, another ullaged and poor Cruse bottling, and even two below-standard magnums at Rodenstock’s Raritaten Weinprobe as recently as 1996. Even the Glamis magnum was high-toned and over the top, its twin better, though with a sour/cheesy tannic finish. Most recently, rising to the occasion, a bottle recorked In 1980: still fairly deep with a fine mahogany-mature edge. Just after decanting, it emitted a deliciously Mouton-like spicy scent. After 30 minutes in the glass it reminded me of Heitz Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet: pure eucalyptus on the palate; dqc its fine flavour matching the bouquet, wonderful length, still buoyed up by its original tannins. Last noted at Wilfred Jaeger’s in the hills south of San Francisco, June 2001-