59 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 30 % Merlot, 10 % Cabernet Franc, 1 % Petit Verdot
14 % Alcohol
Tasted 2015-08-25, 2015-08-26 & 2015-08-27
Imperviously dark cherry red. Directly after opening some sauerkraut notes which evaporate quickly. Then sour cherries. Or better dark choccolate filled with sour cherries. On the palate tart, some bitter notes. These are not the tannins. Something different I can't recognize. Perhaps resin? Mmh. Let's wait.
The next day. Very closed, slightly resinous aromas with the sour cherries more in the background. Earthy. The taste is now more fruity but still with the resins lying somewhere under the carpet. Never tasted something like this. Mmh. Let's wait. Again.
The third day. The big surprise. Now totally balanced aromas. Sour cherries, black chocolate, a little bit chili and black tea. I would say "warm smell" - if anyone understands what I mean. Extremely fruity, full bodied with a lot of spices far at the end of the very long finish. Crazy, really crazy.
This second wine of the Château Smith Haut Lafitte is not an easy drinking wine. You can drink it now and it will provide a lot of fun - after minimum eight hours decanting. Then this is the wine for Christmas Eve when all visitors have left. Sit down in your arm chair, pick up the bottle you decanted hours before and hid. Raise your glass and say: "Merry Christmas" - and this is the truth.
Food pairing? Difficult. I would simply enjoy one or two pieces of medium-dark chocolate. As I said after hours of decanting you can drink the Le Petit. You can also wait another five years. Less decanting, but the style will not change I could bet.
