TWL Lafite

Bargain reds from Lafite ward off the fall chill

Bargain reds from Lafite ward off the fall chill

It's almost scary how we start craving heavier meals the moment that there's a nip in the air. With November already hinting of the winter to come, we're digging into the wine closet for reds instead of whites. Like many wine lovers, we find several massive reds that need more age before drinking and very few wines really ready to drink. Moreover, we've learned the hard way that cheap reds usually deliver exactly what you pay for—along with some additional next-morning misery. Lafite Rothschild (www.lafite.com) has come to our rescue with some superb reds that don't require a special occasion. Listed at under $20 each, the Légende 2014 Bordeaux, Los Vascos Grande Réserve Cabernet 2013 from Chile, and Amancaya Gran Reserva 2013 from Argentina actually...Read More

And the winning Champagne is…

What was our best bubbly of 2015? We've been fortunate this year to enjoy some spectacular sparkling wines, from a range of proseccos to an elegant pink Franciacorta to several cavas and crémants that we simply drank without taking notes or photographs. (Even wine and food writers are entitled to a day off.) But the champagnes of Barons de Rothschild (www.champagne-bdr.com) really took us through the seasons. We started off in warm weather with the non-vintage brut, which is the company's anchor champagne. It's blended with 60 percent chardonnay (mainly grand crus in the Côte des Blancs) and 40 percent pinot noir (principally from the villages of Verzenay, Ay, Mareuil-sur-Ay, and Bouzy). It has a Rumpelstiltskin straw-gold color, a faintly yeasty aroma, and fine and...Read More
Bordeaux is just the beginning for Lafite

Bordeaux is just the beginning for Lafite

Château Lafite Rothschild is legendary for its red Bordeaux, many of them too expensive for all but special occasion meals. Fortunately, the parent company, Domaine Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) (www.lafite.com), has been spreading Lafite's winemaking skills around the globe to create more affordable wines. And back home in Bordeaux, they've developed a series of soft, ready-to-drink red and white wines under the Réserve Spéciale line. We had the chance to try several of the different branches of Lafite at a wine dinner at The Palm Boston, and we're happy to say that the Lafite junior lines show that good wine can be made at a good price. We started by drinking the Lafite Réserve Spéciale Blanc 2013. White Bordeaux, especially from the Entre-deux-Mers district, doesn't...Read More