Wine Legend: Château Lafite-Rothschild 1982, Pauillac, Bordeaux, France
Bottles produced: No record
Composition: 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc
Yield: 40 hectolitres per hectare
Alcohol level: 12.5%
Release price: 170 francs per bottle (around €17), which rose on the export market to 225Fr (€22.50)
Price today: between £47,000 and £54,000 per case (£3,915 to £4,500 a bottle) and rising
葡萄酒傳奇：拉菲城堡1982
產地：法國 波爾多 波亞克
瓶裝量：無記錄
成分：65％赤霞珠， 29％梅洛， 6％品麗珠
產量：每公頃4000公升
酒精度：12.5％
發行價格：每瓶170法郎（約合17歐元），
現價：每箱47,000至54,000英鎊（每瓶3,915至4,500英鎊）， 上漲中
A legend because…
This was an headline vintage of outstanding quality throughout Bordeaux, with ripeness levels not seen for many years. The style of wines proved a terrific shot in the arm for claret, especially on the US market. Indeed, some criticised the vintage at the time for an almost Napa-like (thus atypical) opulence and predicted a short life for the wines. Such criticisms have largely proved unfounded, and the top 1982s are still going strong, establishing the vintage as the most celebrated of the last 50 years. Lafite in particular has maintained a youthful character, developing harmony as it ages.
緣起……
這是整個波爾多品質卓越的頂級年份， 多年未有的成熟度。 這款葡萄酒的風格在波爾多葡萄酒中表現搶眼， 特別是在美國市場。 事實上， 當時有些人批評該款葡萄酒幾乎是納帕風格（因而是非典型的）的馥鬱，
Looking back
Baron Eric de Rothschild, the current manager, was already running Lafite in 1982. Today the vineyard is 107 hectares, but back then it was about 90ha – still larger than any other first growth. There’s no ‘winemaker’ at Lafite, but the technical director then was Jean Crété (ex-Léoville-Las-Cases).
回顧
目前的經理埃裡克·德·羅斯柴爾德男爵（Baron Eric de Rothschild）1982年時已經在經營拉菲（Lafite）了。 今天的葡萄園面積為107公頃， 但當時大約有90公頃 ——仍比其他早期葡萄園的面積要大。 拉菲當時沒有所謂釀酒師， 但有一個技術總監是JeanCrété（以前在雄獅莊）。
The people
The debonair Baron Eric is serious about his wines. He enjoys participating in the final blending, though is willing to be overruled by his team of professionals. A year after he took over the management in 1974, he hired Professor Emile Peynaud as consultant. The cellarmaster in 1982 was Robert Revelle, who succeeded his father Georges. It was not until 1983 that Charles Chevallier became Lafite’s deputy technical director; he later became technical manager of not only Lafite but the other properties - Rieussec, Duhart-Milon and Evangile – that form part of the group.
人物
勤勉的埃裡克男爵對他的葡萄酒非常認真。 他喜歡參與最後的混合， 儘管該願望被他的專業團隊否決。 他在1974年接手管理的一年後， 聘請了Emile Peynaud教授為顧問。
The vintage
The unusually warm growing season resulted in grapes of perfect ripeness and enormous concentration and richness. The harvest began early, on 16 September. Some less well equipped estates had trouble controlling fermentations during the hot weather, but this was not an issue at Lafite. Some estates overcropped as the yield was generous, but dilution was rare. Acidities were fairly low, but the best wines, such as Lafite, had sufficient tannic grip and structure to ensure a long, interesting life.
年份
異常溫暖的生長季節造就了成熟度非常高的葡萄， 釀成了異常濃縮和豐富完美的葡萄酒。 收穫早在9月16日即開始。 在炎熱的天氣裡， 一些裝備不好的酒莊在控制發酵方面遇到麻煩， 但在拉菲沒這問題。 一些莊園產量過大， 但卻很少稀釋。 酸度相當低， 但最好的葡萄酒， 像拉菲， 具有足夠的單寧和結構， 確保了葡萄酒悠長而生動的生命。
The terroir
Lafite lies at the northern end of Pauillac. The soil is deep gravel on perfectly drained, gently undulating slopes. Cabernet Sauvignon is the dominant variety, but in some vintages Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Merlot play a part in the blend. Lafite’s neighbours are Mouton and Cos d’Estournel, both robust and flamboyant wines, which makes it strange that Lafite is renowned for an ethereal lightness that does not stand in the way of its ageability.
風土
拉菲位於波亞克的北端。 土壤是排水良好的深礫石， 在緩緩起伏的斜坡上。 赤霞珠是主要的品種， 但在一些年份， 品麗珠， 味而多和梅洛也在混合裡各佔據一席之地。
The wine
Winemaking practices have changed little at Lafite. The grapes would have been picked by hand, selected in the vineyard, and brought to the winery for destemming and fermentation in large wooden vats (stainless steel tanks were only installed in 1988). The fresh wine was then aged in new barriques, produced at Lafite’s own cooperage, for almost two years before bottling. During the ageing period, the wine would have been regularly racked and then fined before bottling. But selection for the grand vin was less stringent than it would become from 1985.
葡萄酒
拉菲葡萄酒釀造實踐變化不大。 葡萄人工採摘， 挑選後送到釀酒廠， 除梗後在大木桶中進行發酵（不銹鋼罐只是在1988年才安裝）。 新鮮的葡萄酒隨後在拉菲自己制桶廠生產的新酒桶中陳釀， 裝瓶前陳釀近兩年。 在陳釀期間， 葡萄酒會在裝瓶前倒罐濾清， 這款頂級酒的釀制並沒有像1985年以後那麼嚴格。
The reaction
Cask tastings revealed a vintage of almost Port-like richness and weight. Perhaps spurred on by the enthusiasm of the proprietors, the press and trade mostly reacted very positively, and 1982 was soon regarded as a blue-chip vintage, confirmed by steadily rising prices for the top wines.
Michael Broadbent rated it highly from the outset, and his subsequent notes remarked on its fragrance and slow evolution. In 2001 he wrote: ‘So much on show, so much left to show.’
Clive Coates MW writing a year later, thought the wine fresh, classy and intense, adding: ‘It will get even better as it gets more decadent.’
The Chinese love affair with Lafite and the stature of the 1982 vintage has made this among the most sought-after – if not the most sought-after – wine in the country.
反響
酒窖品嘗透露該款酒有著幾乎和波特酒一樣的酒體和豐富性。 也許受到經營者熱情的刺激， 新聞界和貿易界反響都十分積極， 1982年很快就被追捧， 這款頂級葡萄酒售價穩步攀升。
Michael Broadbent從一開始就對其高度評價， 隨後對其香氣和緩慢演變進行了描述。 2001年他寫道：“呈現如此豐富， 還將源源不斷。 ”
一年後， 葡萄酒大師克萊夫·科茨（Chris Coates）撰文， 認為這款酒新鮮， 上乘， 強烈， 並補充說：“它會變得更好， 隨著它演變得更柔和”。
由於中國人對拉菲的喜愛和1982年份崇高地位， 已使得這款酒成為最受追捧的酒之一——如果不是第一受追捧的葡萄酒的話。
譯自——