From Scottish merchant to Bordeaux legend: six centuries on Günz gravel
The history of Château Smith Haut Lafitte begins in 1365, when the Du Boscq family planted the first rows of vines on a gravel plateau south of Bordeaux — a hill that was called Lafitte in old French. In the mid-18th century, the Scottish wine merchant George Smith bought the estate and added his name, creating the current château name. In 1842, Lodi Martin Duffour-Dubergier, then mayor of Bordeaux and co-signatory of the famous 1855 classification, took over the property and gave it the rank of Grand Cru Exceptionnel. After decades under the négociant firm Eschenauer, which acquired the estate in 1958, the decisive turning point followed in 1990: Daniel and Florence Cathiard, former French Olympic skiers and entrepreneurs, bought the then-neglected château and immediately began a comprehensive renovation.
What the Cathiards found was an estate with outdated cellar equipment and unkempt vines. What they made of it has left a lasting mark on the Pessac-Léognan appellation. Within a few years, they moved onto the property, renovated the cellar, and invested consistently in the vineyard and vinification.
Organic precision instead of compromise: how the vineyard is thought of
The concept that the Cathiards have developed over more than three decades is called Bio-Précision — a combination of organic farming and precise cellar technology. Since 2019, the winery has been officially organic certified. The 87-hectare vineyards, a closed block surrounded by forests and hedges, lie on Günz gravel soils deposited by the Garonne millions of years ago. These soils drain naturally and force the vine roots to dig more than six meters deep into the subsoil to access water and mineral salts. At the same time, the pebbles reflect the sun's rays back onto the grapes, thus supporting even ripening.
Their own vine nursery on the Île de Lalande ensures the genetic diversity of the vines and thus the complexity of the wines. In the cellar, work is done exclusively by gravity: fermentation takes place in conically shaped, temperature-controlled wooden vats. Since 1993, the château has operated its own cooperage, where the barrels for maturation are produced. The second wines are created in the so-called Chai Furtif, a cellar built according to circular economy principles that actively saves energy. Animal-based fining agents are avoided — bentonite is used instead.
Red wines with depth, white wines with smoke: what Pessac-Léognan means here
Château Smith Haut Lafitte produces red wines from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot, as well as white wines whose cuvée is based on Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris, and Sémillon — including some parcels with Sauvignon Blanc vines that are around 70 years old. The Günz gravel shapes both colors in different ways: the white wines show a characteristic, subtly smoky note, while the red wines show structure and supple texture. Hand-picking, reduced yields, and optical sorting of the grapes ensure the quality of the harvest.
In addition to the Grand Vin and its second wine, the Le Petit Smith Haut Lafitte, the château explores the character of the appellation in a broader assortment. The Petit Smith offers the same terroir fingerprint — Günz gravel, precise cellar technology, clear grape variety structure — in a framework that makes the Pessac-Léognan style directly accessible: fresh acidity in the white, juicy tannin in the red.
