Carruades de Lafite 2010 offers a 51% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot blend. It presents a floral bouquet with ripe fruit aromas of blackcurrants, blueberries, and spices, complemented by notes of cedar and smoked meats. On the palate, the wine is dense and rich, featuring refined tannins and excellent length. It's a well-integrated, balanced, and elegant wine with a savory, mineral finish. With a drinking window from 2020 to 2040, it’s a great investment for collectors.

Jamessuckling.com | JS 95
Published: Nov 14, 2013

This smells like a bouquet of flowers with blueberries and currants and spices. Full body, yet agile and refined. So fine and pretty. It's balanced and in harmony. Savory. A smoky, decadent and meat undertone. Try in 2016.

The Wine Advocate | RP 92 
Published: Mar 05, 2020
Drink: 2020-2040

Deep garnet colored, the 2010 Carruades de Lafite charges out of the gate with bold scents of baked plums and boysenberries followed by hints of menthol, tobacco leaf, cloves and smoked meats. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers a well-poised frame of ripe, grainy tannins and seamless freshness supporting the savory flavors, finishing with a spicy kick.

Jancisrobinson.com | JR 16.5
Published: Feb 26, 2020
Drink: 2016-2032

Inky and Lafite-ish on the nose and then fresh and frisky on the palate. Very nice wine to drink now but at the price who would want to? 

lafite.com

The vintage
The vineyard cycle began with a cold, relatively wet winter, resulting in a slightly later bud-break than in 2009, in mid-April. Growth was then boosted by dry, sunny weather in April.
May and June were characterized by alternating periods of rain and sunshine. June began with a cold spell that complicated the flowering of the Merlot, resulting in flower abortion and uneven grape size.

Location
Pauillac is located on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, approximately 40km North of Bordeaux. With the tempering influence of the estuary and a great diversity of soils originated from both the Massif Central and the Pyrenees, Pauillac boasts exceptional climatic and geological conditions to make outstanding wines.

Terroir
Chateau Lafite Rothschild is located to the North of the Pauillac appellation, bordering Saint-Estèphe. The vineyard consists of three main areas : the hillsides around the Château, the adjacent Carruades plateau to the west, and 4.5 hectares in Saint Estèphe appellation. The vineyard covers 112 hectares with soil made up of fine deep gravel, mixed with aeolian sand on a subsoil of tertiary limestone. It is well-drained and benefits from optimal sun exposure.

Winemaking
Carruades de Lafite is made according to the traditional Bordeaux method. Alcoholic fermentation is conducted in wooden, concrete and stainless steel vats. Gentle pumping-over helps to ensure a soft extraction and is carried out according to the specific characteristics of each tank. Total maceration time lasts for about 20 days.
After malolactic fermentation, wines are transfered into French oak barrels made by the Tonnelleries des Domaines in Pauillac for a period of 18 months approximately.

Grapes
51 % Merlot
42 % Cabernet sauvignon
5 % Cabernet franc
2 % Petit verdot

Tasting
Floral bouquet. Notes of ripe fruit, blackcurrants, cedar, and spices.
A dense, rich wine with very refined, well-integrated tannins.
Excellent length; overall, an elegant, balanced wine.