The relationship between Lafite and Rothschild family

Lafite Manor was acquired by Rothschild Group in 1868.

Rothschild and Lafite 2010-12-0815: 48 CHATEAU LAFITE ROTHSOCHILD is located on the west coast of France. The earliest record of Lafite can be traced back to AD 1234. In this era, there were many monasteries in French villages and towns. Vertheuil monastery in the north of pauillac village in Bordeaux is where Lafite Castle is today. Fort Lafite has been the property of medieval lords since14th century. "la hite" in Gascon dialect (formerly known as Gascon Province in the Pyrenees Mountains in southwest France) means "mountain", hence the name "Lafite". It is likely that someone planted vines on the land here at this time. But the real scale climate will not be formed until the arrival of the Siegel family in the17th century. It was in their hands that Lafite developed into a famous big grape plantation.

Jaques de égur was the first man to build a vineyard in Lafite, which lasted from about 1670 to 1680. His son Alexandre inherited the manor in 1695, and obtained the management right of Chateau de Latour, another famous winery nearby, through marriage. This is the first chapter in the history of two Bordeaux wineries, Lafite and Latour.

/kloc-At the beginning of the 8th century, wines from Lafite Castle entered the London market. 1707, Lafite's name appeared in the official gazette of London. After disembarking from a merchant ship controlled by British pirates and the Royal Navy (when the war of succession to the Spanish throne was in full swing), Lafite entered the public auction in London. In the communique, Lafite and its "companions"-other French wines that participated in the auction together-were named "New French Red Wine", and the place of origin was specially marked, and the year was quickly added. Success is so brilliant that British Prime Minister robert walpole buys a bucket of Lafite from 1732- 1733 every three months! Perhaps surprisingly, at this time, the French still don't know how to be proud of Bordeaux-it will take another twenty or thirty years!

In order to consolidate this initial success, hone brewing techniques, and especially enhance the prestige of top wines in foreign markets and Versailles, Marquis nicholas alexander de Segur (who is the crystallization of the marriage between Alexander Siegel and Latuburg) has been committed to this grand plan since 17 16. With the support of Li Sailiu, the Prime Minister, Nicholas was awarded the title of "Prince of Grapes" from Louis XV, and the wine of Lafite was promoted to "King's Wine".

1755, Li was elected as the governor of Guyue. Before he left, a doctor in Bordeaux prescribed a unique "prescription" for him: drinking Lafite often, which is the most effective and wonderful "medicine" to make his face rosy and healthy. The medicine really worked and even attracted the attention of the king. One day after Li returned to Paris, he said to him, "Dear Marisa, I really want to say that you look at least 25 years younger since you took office in Guyana!" Li replied, "doesn't my king know that I have found a spring that can rejuvenate people?" I found that Lafite's wine is an all-round nourishing drink, which can be compared with the jade liquid nectar drunk by the gods on Olympus! "

Soon, the whole Palace of Versailles began to talk only about Lafite, because it was favored by the king! Everyone wants to drink it, and Mrs. Pompadou uses it to entertain her guests at a small dinner party. Later, it was even said that Mrs. Du Barry gave herself a special "obligation": Mrs. Du Barry would not drink other drinks to quench her thirst-except Lafite!

Marquis Siegel had no children, and the winery gave it to four daughters. Lafite subsequently separated from latour, but it still belonged to the same family and was run by the same manager until 1785. The winery declined for some time after it was in the hands of Nicolas Marie Alexandre de Ségur, the son of the eldest daughter of the Marquis. 1785, the author of the anonymous memoir Lord Lafite praised Lafite as "the most beautiful vineyard in the world". However, in this Earl Siegel, things are a little out of shape. He was heavily in debt and was forced to sell his orchard at 1784. Fortunately, Nicolas Pierre de Pichard, the first president of Bordeaux Parliament, stepped in. He passed legislation to stipulate the "family recycling right" and let the Siegel family buy back the land.

On the eve of the Great Revolution, Lafite had climbed to the top of the wine industry, as Thomas Jefferson, who later became the president of the United States, once wrote. Thomas was the ambassador of the "Young United States of America" and sent an ambassador to Versailles. Jefferson, as a planter, businessman, politician, jurist and diplomat, was deeply attracted by the wine culture in the French court, so that he had a desire to develop wine culture in his own country. 1787 In May, he came to Bordeaux for a short stay. Five days is enough for him to visit the largest wine merchant in Chartrons (flowing through Bordeaux) and collect enough information to take back to China. In his own wine classification table for Medoc, the top four wineries-including Lafite-are just the top four in the 1855 classification system. And he himself has since become a loyal supporter of Bordeaux's top wines.

The French Revolution involved everyone's fate in the whirlpool, and the winery could not escape. With the execution of Nicolas Pierre de Picher on June 30th, 12 (1June 30th, 794), the fortune of the winery declined rapidly. An "auction announcement" was posted in the front hall of Lafite Castle, announcing that Lafite will be auctioned in public on September 1797+02. "Lot Description" introduces Lafite as "the top winery in Medoc, producing first-class Bordeaux wine". It was a Dutch citizen who won Lafite, and soon he sold Lafite to three other Dutch people. In the following 60 or 70 years, Lafite's owners changed frequently, including a food supplier of Napoleon's army. During this period, the best years of lirafei were 1795 and 1798, especially 180 1 802, 18 14 and/kloc-0.

18 15, Mr. lawton, a famous bordeaux wine agent, established the first wine classification table in Medoc region of bordeaux in the journal with the same name as his office, and Lafite ranked first. This table is similar to the classification of 1855. "I put Lafite on the top because among the first three (top wines), Lafite is the most elegant and exquisite, and its wine quality is extremely delicate." He added, "Lafite's vineyard is located in the best scenic place in Medoc". During this period, 1834' s Lafite is of outstanding quality, 184 1 is even better, and 1846' s is the most beautiful work.

1855, the World Expo was held in Paris. In order to promote French wine culture, the then French King Charles Louis Napolé on Bonaparte ordered the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce to classify Bordeaux wines. After many twists and turns by Parisians, this grading system, as the official standard, has established Lafite's "first-class" status, and will also create an unprecedented prosperity era for Medoc. After 1855, the grade of Lafite was unanimously confirmed in various grading standards and informal tasting meetings. The best year of this period can be 1847, 1848, 1858, 1864, 1869, 1870, especially1870.

1August 8, 868 is a memorable day for the Rothschild family. On this day, Baron James de Rothschild bought the castle at a public auction held by the former owner of Lafite. Baron James is a branch of the Rothschild family developed in France. Unfortunately, the baron himself died three months after he bought Galeries Lafayette. His three sons * * * inherited the winery, including Baron Edmund, who later made immortal contributions to the development of the winery. At that time, the brewery owned 74 hectares of vineyards.

In several senses, 1868 is a memorable year for Lafite: welcoming a new owner; Wine entered a period of development and prosperity; A more brilliant achievement is that the price of Lafite has reached the highest price of 6,250 francs in history this year, which is equivalent to 4,700 euros today. This price is unmatched in the next century. Of course, at the end of the twentieth century, the price of famous wines rose all the way, and the 6250 francs in that year had been greatly exceeded. Medoc's glorious age lasted about fifteen years after Lafite entered the Roche family.

1The global nightmare at the end of the 9th century and the beginning of the 20th century: the infestation of nodule aphids, the spread of grape downy mildew, the top fake wine incident, World War I, and the serious economic crisis ... all these have led to the bottom of the winery's fate. Rothschild Lafite Winery, which suffered from downy mildew, decided to downgrade some vintage wines from 1882 to 1886 and 19 10 to15. In order to effectively combat the counterfeiting of top wines, wines are bottled in wineries. During the World War1914-1918, the development of wineries was greatly affected by the mobilization of war. The unprecedented financial crisis in 1930s forced vineyards to reduce their planting area. Fortunately, there are some bright spots on the black background: 1899, 1900, 1906, 1926, 1929 are all excellent years.

World War II continued to make the fate of wineries more tortuous. With the fall of France in June 1940, Medoc was occupied by the Germans, and Fort Lafite and Fort Mouton were not spared by the Germans. The Rothschild family winery was sealed up and became the property managed by the public. In order to protect Lafite from German invasion, the interim government requisitioned Lafite as an agricultural school in 1942. The castle was requisitioned, the old wine was looted, and during the war, there was a shortage of energy and supply, so Lafite Castle had to undergo all these severe tests. At the end of 1945, the Rothschild family finally became the owners of Lafite again, and Baron Eli was in charge of the winery restoration project. 1945, 1947 and 1949 are excellent wines in this reconstruction period.

Under the auspices of Baron Erie, vineyards and wine cellars have undergone a series of reconstruction projects, and the managers have also been completely reorganized. In the 1950' s, a batch of cows were purchased to reclaim the grassland behind Lafite Castle and provide fertilizer for grapes. Baron Erie played a major role in the process of restoring the production of top wines in the winery. He was an active participant in the earliest wine tasting in London. At the same time, Baron Eli is one of the founders of the Brewers Association founded by 1950.

1955, an excellent year, can be regarded as a symbol of revival. However, the vineyards in Bordeaux still failed to escape the terrible frost in February of 1959 and 196 1, until they really recovered and a new round of good years began. 1960s is an era of real recovery and growth, and the market continues to expand, especially the development of the American market; The price rebounded, and the competition between Chateau Lafite and Chateau Mouton made the price of wine soar.

1973- 1976 after the bordeaux crisis, Rothschild's chateau Lafite was headed by Baron Eric de Rothschild, the nephew of Baron Eli. Two excellent years, 1975 and 1976, consolidated the achievements made by the winery after it embarked on the road of development again. In order to pursue excellent quality, Baron Eric actively promotes the construction of winery technical force: replanting and overall construction in the vineyard are accompanied by scientific fertilization schemes; Selecting suitable additives for wine processing; Stainless steel fermentation tank is installed in the wine cellar as a supplement to oak fermentation barrel; Establish a new circular wine warehouse for storing aged wines. Designed and built by Catalan architect Ricardo Bofill, this wine cellar is a revolutionary and innovative work with high aesthetic value, which can store 2,200 large oak barrels.

1985, in order to promote the development of the winery, Baron Eric asked Lafite to shake hands with photographers, and Lafite entered famous French photographers jacques henri lartigue, irving penn, Robert Doisneau (one of the most popular and prolific reporting photographers in France) and Richard Avedon (a prestigious American fashion photographer). Baron also successfully expanded the development space of Lafite winery by acquiring wineries in other parts of France and vineyards abroad. During the ten years of 1980, 1982, 1985, 1986 and 1990 were all excellent years, and the prices set a new record.

1990 has a brighter future. The century turns in silence, and the Chen Fang wine in the cellar is pregnant with beautiful promises. 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000 are the most beautiful works in the last decade of the 20th century, which will shine with the passage of time. This rational optimism is based on Rothschild Lafite's unremitting pursuit of excellent quality in the past 50 years.