2009 Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte Pessac-Leognan 750 ml

When we first visited Château Smith Haut Lafitte in 2009, proprietors Florence and Daniel Cathiard had high hopes for the vintage. How right they were: Their 2009 would go on to earn a perfect 100-point score from Robert Parker himself, who praised it as “the finest wine ever made” by the couple.

Now, 11 years later, it bursts with a symphony of cedar, five-spice, licorice, graphite, and pipe tobacco alongside black cherries and black raspberries. It’s stunning right now and has another three decades of life remaining. We’re offering this classic red to our members, directly from the château’s cellar, for $329. (Other 100-point wines of the great vintage are infinitely more expensive: The Château Haut Brion is close to $1000, and the Château Latour is pushing $1,400!)

Château Smith Haut Lafitte was founded more than 600 years ago, but it’s only since the Cathiards took over that it has reached its full potential. James Suckling noted that they “spared no expense” in their efforts—they even make their own barrels on-site, making them the only non-First Growth Château to do so. The result of all that dedication are wines, Suckling noted, with a “precision and quality that few wineries in Bordeaux can attain.”

The property itself is magnificent, an oasis in Pessac whose terroir of gravel and river stones allow for a balance of ripeness and concentration. We return as often as we can, and each visit we marvel at what they’ve achieved. The 2009 Château Smith Haut Lafitte is a 100-point testament to it all.