Lafite 2019 released at 16% lower than 2018

Château Lafite is the first of the first growths to release its 2019 vintage, which, at €396 per bottle ex-negociant, is 15.7% lower than its 2018 release price.

As reported by Liv-ex, volumes of Lafite 2019 are reportedly down 50% on last year, and yet it is priced 15.7% more cheaply than the €470 per bottle 2018 release price.

The sought after 13.4% ABV wine is being offered by the trade at £5,112 per case, a drop of 14.8% on the 2018 sterling release price of £6,000 per case. Liv-ex described the release price as “very good value”.

Often generous with his scores, Lafite 2019 received 99-100 points from American critic James Suckling, and was among his top-scoring clarets of the vintage. He said the wine was “full-bodied, yet shows such harmony and polish”. The Wine Advocate’s Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW meanwhile, gave it a 97-99 point score.

She found the 2019 vintage of Lafite “atypical”, and descried it as having a “hedonic, forward expression, with notably lower acidity and higher pH”.

“The tannins are unmistakably Lafite, featuring all the grace, finesse and pixilated poise fans will expect. What an exciting paradox for the palate.”