1980 Moulin des Carruades

Moulin des Carraudes was a second wine of Chateau Lafite Rothschild in Pauillac through part of the 1980s. Carraudes was the historic name of a group of vineyards adjacent to Chateau Lafite, and in the 19th century Chateau Lafite Rothschild purchased them. Wine from those vineyards was produced and marketed as a second label for Lafite along with Carraudes de Lafite. In the mid-20th century there were periods when Chateau Lafite Rothschild produced both Moulin des Carraudes and Carraudes de Lafite. Today the only second wines is Carraudes de Lafite.

Pauillac is Bordeaux’s most famous appellation, thanks to the fact that it is home to three of the region’s fabled first-growth châteaux, Lafite-Rothschild, Mouton-Rothschild and Latour. Perched on the left bank of the Gironde River north of the city of Bordeaux, Pauillac is centered around the commune of Pauillac and includes about 3,000 acres of vineyards. The Bordeaux classification of 1855 named 18 classified growths, including the three above mentioned First Growths. Cabernet Sauvignon is the principal grape grown, followed by Merlot. The soil is mostly sandy gravel mixed with marl and iron. Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that “the textbook Pauillac would tend to have a rich, full-bodied texture, a distinctive bouquet of black currants, licorice and cedary scents, and excellent aging potential.”

This is a second label of Chateau Lafite-Rothschild. Original label was Carruades de Lafite, then switched to Moulin des Carruades, and back again to Carruades de Lafite in 1987.