Chateau Lafite Rothschild 2002

The Wine Cellar Insider: "Elegant, refined, charming and displaying more ripeness than you´d expect from the vintage, after a 2 hour decant, the wine opened with cassis, cigar box, blackberry, cedar wood, earth, stone and forest floor aromatics. Silky, smooth and round, still youthful, this stylish blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9.5% Merlot and 3.5% Cabernet Franc will easily age for decades."

Wine Spectator: "Bubbling over with crushed berries, currants and spices, with tobacco notes. Beautiful. Full-bodied, with gorgeously velvety tannins and a long finish of pretty fruit. This is a racy yet elegant Lafite. Classy. Best after 2010. 16,000 cases made."

The Wine Advocate: "A brilliant offering and a candidate for wine of the vintage, this is classic Lafite that reminded me somewhat of the 1976, although the vintage conditions were completely different. This is a medium-weight, quintessentially elegant style of Lafite with notes of lead pencil shavings/graphite along with black currants, plums, and crushed rocks/mineral. Wonderfully pure, dense, with a deep ruby/purple color and loads of fruit, definition, and a long finish, this is a brilliant, elegant Lafite Rothschild that builds incrementally in the mouth and has more power and density than it initially seems. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2025."

Weinwisser: "Dunkles Granat, rubinroter Rand. Dezent milchiges Bouquet, herrlich süss mit reifen roten Pflaumen, Sandelholz und Cassis. Samtener Gaumen mit sehr angenehmen, fast mollig anmutenden Tanninen, wirkt noch dezent vordergründig, aber das deutet auch auf ein für den kleinen Jahrgang 2002 erstaunliches Potenzial hin."

Decanter: "Another Indian summer vintage (with useful northerly winds) that followed a difficult July and August. This has still-tight tannins and remains deep in colour, with just the very beginnings of whispering its age. After a few minutes in the glass, cigar notes curl up and out, followed by beautifully elegant, savoury-edged black fruit and tea leaf notes. This was extremely austere at first, but it's now beginning to soften and is likely to develop similarly to the 1999, which makes it one to watch. Will reward further cellaring. Drinking Window 2018 - 2030"

Falstaff: "Dunkles Rubingranat, tiefer Kern, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. In der Nase schokoladig unterlegte Nuancen von dunklen Beeren, ein Hauch von Holzwürze, etwas Nougat. Am Gaumen frisch, mit rotbeerig-zitronigen Nuancen, zeigt einen rassigen Stil, ein knackiger Jungwein, salzig-mineralische Anklänge, rauchig unterlegte Gewürznoten im Nachhall. ! Lagern +30 Jahre"

Jancis Robinson: "This was our first mystery vintage, served blind. I initially guessed 2001, largely because I'd put 2002 completely out of my mind. Very rich and nuanced on the nose, then there was an impression of sweet ink, before sweet soft fruit that almost covers the perceptible tannins that impart a slightly drying finish. The acidity is a little obvious. Just slightly pinched and awkward at the moment and the balance is less than perfect but it's very good for a 2002!"