This bottle was in very good condition and has been properly stored by me since shortly after release. The color still is rather deep scarlet with just a trace of age showing at the rim. The main attribute of this wine is great complexity and fine balance. It is a perfect food wine, although not an in-your-face near fruit bomb such as the 59 Lafite, which likely will please the Parker crowd more than the 61. This wine does not shout caernet sauvignon. Rather it is very complex with cedar, cassis, spice, enough acidity, and mineral character including the Lafite "touch of iron" character. The wine shows a wide range of tastes and smells as you take a sip, and then as you finally swallow. The tannins are slightly dry, but rather smooth.
There have been more than the usual reports of bottle variation for the
61 Lafite. One can always blame poor storage, but it is possible the 61 Lafite was bottled in different batches, perhaps at different times, that are a bit different. I am in no rush to open the 9 remaining bottles of the case, since the wine appears capable of lasting many more years. A very good US$11 wine, but that was expensive for a wine when I bought it shortly after release.Of course the 61 Latour is now the darling of the auction houses, and likely is the top wine of the vintage. But the auction price of the 61 Latour is about 5 times that of the 61 Lafite or Margaux.Mouton-Rothschild and Haut-Brion are about 1 1/2 more expensive at auction for the 61s than Lafite or Margaux.Of course, if money is no consideration, there is the 61 Petrus that is about twice as expensive as the 61 Latour. You may have a case for about 32000 Pounds UK at auction. Or you might pay twice as much at carrage-trade wine shops, although even they are not likely to have a full case for sale.Of the Lafites since 1950, some have now passed the peak, and many more recent ones are not likely to peak for many more years. The best to drink now are likely the 1959, 1961, and 1955 in that order. Then there is a big gap until 1982. The 1982 is now drinking very well, but likely has not peaked and it might be best to keep it a while longer. Most of the other top Lafites since 1982 can use a few to many more years before they peak - all with proper storage, of course.