2005 Château Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac, Bordeaux

Red • Dry • Full Bodied • Cabernet Sauvignon (89%), Merlot (10%), Petit Verdot (1%)
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Code: 20050601500028008857
  • Colour
    Red
  • Sweetness
    Dry
  • Vintage
    2005
  • Alcohol
    13%
  • Grape
    Cabernet Sauvignon (89%), Merlot (10%), Petit Verdot (1%)
  • Body
    Full Bodied
  • Producer
    Château Lafite Rothschild

Critics reviews

Andy Howard MW
18/20

89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot.

Lovely deep purple colour in the glass with lifted violet and leafy black fruit on the nose. On the palate there was a cool, menthol edge with slightly subdued fruit and a surprising amount of oak evident. Perhaps not the best bottle? Fine texture on the palate with ripe, polished tannins, plenty of acidity and a racy feel on the finish. Still seems a young wine which will repay further ageing – I suspect this was a bottle in less-than-perfect condition (I scored a bottle tasted in 2009 a slightly higher 18.5/20), but expensive to find out at £750 a time.

Andy Howard MW, JancisRobinson.com (June 2021)
Antonio Galloni
97/100

The 2005 Lafite-Rothschild is a gorgeous wine, but it is also very young. Readers lucky enough to own it will find a very classic, gracious Lafite-Rothschild that still needs a few years to be at its best. Bright red-toned fruit, crushed rocks, mint and licorice open first, followed by darker aromas and flavors that develop as the wine gains volume with air. Tasted next to its peers, Lafite is so typical of itself and less marked by the year. And that is one of the signs of a truly great terroir. Lafite-Rothschild is not as showy as many other wines in this vintage, but it is so true to its own identity, and that is the highest compliment I can pay it. The 2005 is 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, done in 100% new oak, which is not at all noticeable. At the time, the Cabernet percentage was quite high, but that has now become the norm. Tasted two times.

Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (April 2021)
Charles Curtis MW
99/100
A wine worthy of superlatives, the 2005 Lafite showed incredible concentration yet a superb balance. The lovely blackcurrant and plum fruit shows a fragrant floral edge, hints of oak spice, and a firm, earthy underpinning. The texture is superbly elegant, with a lovely freshness and a lilting, silky finish, yet it does not lack a tannic grip, and the finish is satisfyingly long. Near perfection. A blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot with just a drop of Petit Verdot, aged in new casks.
Charles Curtis MW, Decanter.com (June 2021)
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Delivers blackberry, dried porcini, tobacco and licorice aromas. Full-bodied, with layers of velvety tannins and loads of dark chocolate, cigar box, currant, berry and mineral. The finish is long, with a coffee, almost meaty, aftertaste. Very beautiful and balanced.
James Suckling
100/100
An incredible nose, so subtle with red fruits, mint, minerals, and all sorts of flowers give way to Cohiba cigar tobacco. The palate has such freshness and density, with perfectly polished tannins. Slightly leathery, like a wonderful Hermes bag. What a wine, please leave this for another ten years. Pull the cork in 2020. 10% Merlot. Find the wine
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (February 2011)
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Extremely complex and intriguing on the nose. More lifted than Duhart Milon and Carruades. Very fine-boned and minerally - graphite sensation although there is no Cabernet Franc in the final blend). Delicate - which is quite an achievement in 2005! Very subtle and very youthful. Wonderful opulence with a neat, dry finish. A gorgeous drink that may be overlooked in comparison with Latour’s greater drama but a very fine representation of both château and vintage, with, I suspect, a very long window of drinkability.
Jancis Robinson MW
18/20

Relatively pale garnet and relatively ethereal as usual. Savoury and fresh. Extremely distinctive. Mix of ink and cheese biscuits and very refreshing. Sui generis.

Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com (September 2025)
Jane Anson MW
98/100
Effortless, balanced, fine elongated tannins, mouthwatering and moreish. Walking the tightrope of concentration and uplift, as Lafite does so well, and is a wonderful example of this vintage, still with decades ahead of it, delivering cassis, slate, mint leaf, sea spray, crayon and joy. 100% new oak Ignace-Joseph Vanlerberghe 1855, Baron Joseph 1868, scales on the bottle. Charles Chevallier technical director for this 2005 vintage, in the last year with Emile Peynaud as consultant. 43hl/h yield.
Jane Anson MW, JaneAnson.com (March 2025)
Jeb Dunnuck
97/100
The 2005 Château Lafite-Rothschild is a beauty, and it has that quintessential power paired with incredible elegance and complexity that this Château does so well. Based on 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Merlot, it has perfumed notes of red and black fruits, freshly sharpened pencils, saddle leather, graphite, and spice. These all carry to a medium to full-bodied 2005 that has a layered, balanced mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and a great finish. It stays relatively focused and tight on the palate, and benefits from air. Drink bottles any time over the coming 20-30 years.
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com (April 2024)
Lisaperrotti Brown MW
95/100
The 2005 Lafite is a blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Merlot. Deep garnet-brick in color, it slips sensuously from the glass with eager-to-please scents of creme de cassis, Christmas cake, and cedar chest, giving way to hints of Indian spices, sweaty leather, and pencil shavings. The mineral-laced, medium-bodied palate is elegant and shimmery, delivering firm tannins and a soft-spoken finish. Delivering a mature, wonderfully evocative experience now, it is well within its drinking window and should cellar to 2045+. At this time the estate was managed by Baron Eric de Rothschild and Charles Chevallier was technical director.
Lisaperrotti Brown MW, TheWineIndependent.com (July 2022)
Matthew Jukes
19+/20
So refined and silky, with a more cherry-red theme than many of the other darker wines, this is a beautifully textured wine featuring silky tannins and perfect equilibrium already.  Classy, à point and with another decade and more ahead, this is a super-elegant Lafite, and it shows terrific style already.
Matthew Jukes, MatthewJukes.com (September 2025)
Neal Martin
96/100
Having tasted the 2005 Château Lafite-Rothschild several times both blind and non-blind, it comes across as a First Growth politely requesting more time to "settle". Here, from an ex-château bottle tasted in Bordeaux, it delivers that graphite, pencil-box bouquet that unfurls gradually in the glass, biding its time, graceful but not intense. Parallel to some of its fellow 2005s, it is developing a little more spice, namely thyme and sage, than I recall. The palate is medium-bodied and beautifully balanced, to wit, a sophisticated Pauillac that priorities elegance and poise over intensity of fruit—in keeping with Lafite Rothschild's style. You come away with the sense that it will take its time and decline, giving away a great deal in its primacy, even if it is still more approachable than the 2005 Latour for example. Therefore, I would be inclined to set this aside for several more years. Tasted November 2014.
Neal Martin, Wine Advocate (July 2016)
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