Nose
At Bottling: The nose is already expressive, offering aromas of cherries and ripe blackcurrants, with a hint of vanilla.
Palate
At Bottling: On the palate, the attack is soft and full-bodied. The fruit from the nose reappears, with a deliciously tangy, voluptuous character. Long, precise finish leaving a pleasant impression of sweetness. A wine that should reveal its full potential around 2025/2028.
Growing Conditions
On the eve of the celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the acquisition of Château Lafite by the Rothschild family, our teams faced major challenges due to the capricious weather conditions. From December to July, unremitting rain increased the risk of mildew and hail. The summer only really started in mid-July with very high, sometimes extreme heat, which helped to restore the vines’ health and set us on the path to a great vintage. Compared to Lafite, Duhart-Milon’s terroir proved to be drier in 2018 for the Cabernet Sauvignon, but the Merlot terroir is more clayey, resulting in two different responses to the weather conditions. The Cabernet Sauvignon suffered from a lack of water over the summer, but some rain on 28th August and 5th September helped to restore the grapes’ balance and for them to ripen correctly. The Merlot’s more clayey terroir proved to be particularly well suited to the vintage, enabling some of the finest Merlot ever seen at Duhart to be obtained: a promising result for our Grand Vin, which always contains a considerable proportion of Merlot.
Aging
10 months in two-year-old barrels
Appearance
At Bottling: Beautiful deep, glittering colour.
