The wines at the very top of the Bordeaux Classification each have their own individual charms and history. The classification is so central to the history of wine investment that it’s very easy to forget that there were reasons why these chateaux were chosen in the middle of the 19th Century. So in the following series of blog posts, we aim to look more in depth at the history of these French wines, how they came to be selected for the Exposition Universelle and how the distinction assured 150 years at the head of the wine family table.
Chateau Lafite-Rothschild
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CHATEAU LAFITE ROTHSCHILD |
| Area: 264 acres Region: Medoc (Paulliac)
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COMPOSITION |
| Cabernet Sauvignon (80-95%) Merlot (5-20%) Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot (0-5%)
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ADDITIONAL INFO |
| Aged for 18 to 20 months 15,000 to 20,000 cases produced per vintage |
The existence of wine plantations in the centuries leading up to the classification is a foregone conclusion. But though the Lafite estate (located in the Pauillac commune between the villages of Saint-Julien and Saint-Estephe) is now completely inseparable from its vineyards, it has actually existed as a more general agricultural holding since sometime in the 14th Century. This humble beginning is perhaps best reflected in the unpretentiousness of its name, meaning ‘small hill’ (via Gascon ‘la hite’).
Vines were probably grown on the site for much of this history, but the estate as we know it today was largely the effort of the Ségur family who purchased it in the 17th Century. Jacques de Ségur was responsible for planting most of the vineyard, around 1680. In the next century, Nicolas-Alexandre, marquis de Ségur refined wine production at the Lafite estate and introduced it to the court of Louis XV, earning him the nickname ‘Prince of Vines’.
The wine itself became known as the ‘king’s wine’, and by the time of the 1855 classification (after the upheaval of the revolution, and a stint of Dutch ownership), the Château Lafite was considered first among the first growth wines. The second great Lafite dynasty began with the 1868 purchase of the estate by Baron James Mayer Rothschild, and despite occupation (and looting) in the Second World War the estate has remained in the possession of the Rothschilds.
Today, Château Lafite’s prestige is untarnished. It arguably remains the most important Bordeaux winery with one particular bottle holding the accolade for being the most expensive ever sold at auction ($156,000).
The First Growth Wines Series
Part One: Château Lafite-Rothschild
Part Two: Château Latour
Part Three: Château Margaux
Part Four: Château Haut-Brion
Part Five: Château Mouton-Rothschild
