Château Smith Haut Lafitte, Le Petit Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, 2021
Château Smith Haut Lafitte, Le Petit Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, 2021
- White Still
- 75.0cl
- 13.5%
- Organic
- Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon
Le Petit Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is a charming, polished white from one of Graves’ most respected estates, capturing the freshness and quiet refinement the region does so well.
Château Smith Haut Lafitte sits on a rise overlooking its vineyards – “la fitte” in the local dialect – where soils of Günz gravel, river stones and semi-precious pebbles were laid down by the Garonne millions of years ago. This remarkable terroir provides excellent natural drainage, encouraging the vines to root deep for nourishment, while the gravel reflects the sun’s rays back onto the canopy, helping the grapes ripen evenly and fully. The result is a white with clarity, energy and a real sense of place.
- ❖ ABV: 13.5%
Grapes
Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon
Vintage report
The 2021 growing season in Bordeaux delivered one of those vintages that separates the wheat from the chaff. Spring frost in April walloped many vineyards, particularly on the Right Bank, slashing potential yields before the season properly began. A sodden start gave way to a blistering summer that pushed ripening forward, then September rains arrived just as harvest decisions loomed. The producers who survived the frost and timed their picking with surgical precision crafted wines of real character, whilst others found themselves wrestling with dilution or struggling with reduced volumes.
What emerged from this gauntlet is a vintage of surprising charm, though decidedly not a blockbuster year. The Merlot-based Right Bank wines show particular finesse where frost damage was minimal, with a silky texture that makes them uncommonly approachable young. Left Bank Cabernet Sauvignon fared better through the challenging weather, producing wines with good structure but less of the power you might expect from recent years. We find ourselves reaching for these 2021s now rather than cellaring them for decades—they're drinking beautifully with a few years on them and should hit their stride over the next decade.
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