Château Smith Haut Lafitte (White)

The history of Château Smith Haut Lafitte goes back to 1365, when the noble house of Bosq chose this soil to exploit a vineyard. Then in the eighteenth century, the Scotsman George Smith bought the estate, gave him his name, built the Chartreuse and exported to England on his ships, the already famous barrels. In 1842, Mr. Duffour-Dubergier, mayor of Bordeaux but passionate viticulturist, inherited from his mother the Château Smith Haut Lafitte and shaped a Grand Cru. At the beginning of the century, the Louis Eschenauer House gave the account of the exceptional quality of this wine and ensure the diffusion, to finish the property in 1958. Of this time, important investments were made, in particular the construction of a superb underground cellar which allows to raise at the same time more than 1000 barrels. In 1990, Daniel Cathiard fell in love with the vineyard and became part of the prestigious lineage of the owners with the firm intention to continue to value this noble vintage: a permanent search for excellence led him to handle harmoniously the techniques most Modernization of vinification using traditional methods: living soils, organic compost, return to small oak vats, aging on barrels … Without a doubt, the elegance of Smith Haut Lafitte red wines deserve this care daily.

The terroir of Château Smith Haut Lafitte is located on a mound of 67 hectares planted in the vineyards and the discovery of “Gunzian” tombs which offer two astonishing peculiarities: a natural drainage of the soil which forces the roots of the vines to fetch water and the mineral salts at greater depth, and a “mirror effect” of the sun, which, by reflecting on the pebbles composing the tomb, helps the ripening and the blossoming of the grapes. The average age of the vines is 38 years old. The grape varieties are 90% Sauvignon, 5% Semillon and 5% Sauvignon Gris. Concerned with the quality, the same operations in green are carried out for the whites and the reds, to prepare the vines and the clusters with the grape harvests: disbudding, suckering, stripping. The grape harvests are by hand, Sauternaise, by successive trials, which pick up only the bunches with good maturity. The bunches are then pressed gently with inert pneumatic presses. During this pressing, the bunches and the juices are protected from oxidation by an inert gas (nitrogen), thus protecting all the aromatic potential and the color of the juice of the raisins. The juice flows at 8 degrees for 24 hours settling. Natural fermentations then begin in barrels. They last from 8 to 20 days in general. The custom-made breeding of 10 to 12 months, with a proportion of 50% new barrels.

At the tasting, Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc offers freshness, power, liveliness, volume, creaminess and maturity.

Their Wine

Owners: Florence & Daniel CATHIARD and Alice TOURBIER CATHIARD
Commercial Director: Ludovic FRADIN
Technical Director: Fabien TEIGEN