In honor of Daniel Cathiard: Smith Haut Lafitte 2010

By Panos Kakaviatos

Sunday 5 April, 2026

“Nous faisons partie du meuble,” I recall Daniel Cathiard telling me over a chat at his estate, Château Smith Haut Lafitte, in 2009. This French expression describes people who have been around for so long in a place that they are almost invisible, taken for granted, or simply part of the background. As I opened a bottle of Smith Haut Lafitte 2010 for Easter lunch today, that phrase came back to me with particular resonance. Yet when I first met Daniel and his wife Florence sometime in 2001, they were still, in some quarters, seen as something of a departure from established norms.

The passing of Daniel Cathiard in late January this year, at the age of 81, marks the end of one of the most unique and inspiring careers in the modern Bordeaux wine world. A former ski champion, entrepreneur, and then passionate winemaker, he leaves behind a lasting legacy in the heart of Pessac-Léognan and beyond.

Daniel was first known as a member of the celebrated French Olympic ski team of the 1960s, alongside Jean-Claude Killy, Guy Périllat, and Léo Lacroix. Killy, a great lover of fine Bordeaux, would later become the first to sign the visitors’ book at Château Smith Haut Lafitte. Like countless others, I have also added my name in gratitude for the Cathiards’ generous hospitality.

After the death of his father in 1970, Daniel took over the family’s small supermarket business. Over the following two decades, he transformed it into the tenth-largest mass distribution group in France. Never one to stand still, he went on to develop the sporting goods chain Go Sport across France, Belgium, Spain, and even California.

He had met Florence earlier, in 1965, while both were part of the French Olympic ski team. She worked alongside him for a decade managing Genty and Go Sport before launching her advertising agency, later becoming Vice President of McCann Europe in 1985. Their partnership, professional as much as personal, would prove decisive in everything that followed.

In 1990, the couple sold their business interests to acquire Château Smith Haut Lafitte, a Grand Cru Classé in Graves that had long been underestimated. Over the next two years, they invested heavily in restoring the winery and the 18th-century manor house built by George Smith, choosing to make it their home and to devote themselves fully to their new passion: crafting great white and red wines.

In those early years, their arrival, coming from outside the traditional Bordeaux milieu, naturally prompted a degree of curiosity and, at times, a certain reserve among some long-established families of the region.

But what is striking, looking back with a glass of the 2010 in hand, is how completely that perception has faded. The Cathiards’ approach, combining deep respect for the terroir with a commitment to sustainability, innovation, and a genuine sense of hospitality, has not only endured, it has helped redefine expectations.

I recall tasting the 2010 at the château in 2015, during the celebrations of their 25th anniversary. It stood out. Built on a high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (64%), alongside 30% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, and from modest yields of 35 hl/ha, it shared much on paper with the 2009. Yet it felt different: fresher, more precise, more bracing. Where the 2009 showed a touch of warmth, the 2010 carried itself with greater tension and clarity.

Tasting it again today, 11 years on, it has entered a fine plateau of evolution. There is a sense of quiet strength and composure: the structure remains firm yet integrated, the fruit vibrant, with tertiary notes just beginning to emerge. It has depth and finesse, a wine at ease with itself. Above all, it is pleasurable, pairing effortlessly with Easter lamb, making the moment feel more complete.

Daniel’s legacy 

Throughout his ownership, Daniel oversaw every detail of the estate with discretion, and Florence brought boundless outward energy, shaping the estate’s global presence and adding the artistic dimension that now defines the property, including Barry Flanagan’s Leaping Hare, which has become its emblem. Under their leadership, Smith Haut Lafitte has become a benchmark of Bordeaux, blending organic viticulture, architectural ambition, and a sense of place that extends well beyond the vineyard. The visit of King Charles III in 2023 only confirmed what had long been evident: that the Cathiards had not simply joined the Bordeaux landscape. They had become an essential part of it. And perhaps that is the quiet irony of Daniel’s remark all those years ago. In time, they did indeed become part of the furniture, but only by reshaping the room around them.