Château Lafite Rothschild Pauillac 1855 1er Cru 1978

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%.