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Château Haut-Brion

The wine of Château Haut-Brion, particularly the red (although I shall certainly not forget the white), has a character that seems unique and even when placed alongside Pessac counterparts this wine seems to stand alone. It is not the superficial differences - most notably the unusual shape of the bottle - that matter; it is the savoury richness and complexity on the palate that sets it apart. This is great wine.

Haut-Brion: A Brief History

Even though the Médoc was marshland of little viticultural interest until the 17th century, when the low-rolling gravelly hills were drained by Dutch engineers, all three of the original premier grand cru classé estates (Mouton having been elevated to the rank in 1973) located there still have illustrious histories stretching back many centuries. Further south in the Graves region, on the far side of Bordeaux itself, we should expect no less. Particularly so when we consider that this was no boggy wasteland, but instead a region which can boast a long and prosperous history that threads its way back through the medieval years into the mists of time; a number of the ancient châteaux located here and in neighbouring Sauternes bear castellated ramparts as if to offer evidence of this great heritage, a contrast to the more elegant styles found further north.

For Haut-Brion itself, the fourth member of the original first-growth quartet, this thread can be followed back as far as the 14th century. At that time this estate appears to have been centred around a manor house entitled Aubrion, a name which may relate to a long-forgotten proprietor. The estate enjoyed a number of different owners but, somewhat curiously, in 1509 it came into the hands of Jean de Ségur, a member of the same Ségur family that later would take ownership of many of the top estates of the Médoc, including Lafite and Latour. This connection between these premier estates was relatively short-lived, however, as during the 1520s ownership passed to Philippe de Chabot. Chabot, once a mayor of Bordeaux and an associate of François I, then went by the grand title of Amiral de Brion. Mayoral ownership seems to have suited the ancient Haut-Brion, as it was then acquired by Pierre de Bellon who held the same position in Libourne, the town today surrounded by the vineyards of Pomerol. De Bellon gave the property away as a dowry for his daughter Jeanne when she married Jean de Pontac in 1525; this is a name long associated with this estate and indeed for many years it was known not as Château Haut-Brion, but as Château Pontac.

The Pontac Era

Jean de Pontac continued the mayoral theme; the son of Arnaud de Pontac, a wealthy shipping magnate and like Philippe de Chabot a mayor of Bordeaux, Jean was also responsible for establishing the vineyard. He enlarged the property, buying up neighbouring plots of land, and in 1550 felt in a suitable position to begin construction of the château. Although over the years this has naturally been augmented and modified, the buildings he commissioned still stand today, now forming just one corner of the modern-day mansion.

A noted Bordeaux parliamentarian Jean de Pontac married twice more after Jeanne de Bellon and he sired 15 offspring. One of this brood was Arnaud, named for his grandfather, and upon Jean's death in 1589 - which if true made him an admirable 101 years old at the time of his demise - it was Arnaud II who inherited the estate. A religious man, Arnaud had been ordained a priest in 1557 and he ultimately wore the office of Bishop of Bazas. He used his inherited wealth in a generous and pious fashion, spending much on the restoration of the local cathedral, and he perhaps showed less interest in his estate and its wine than did his son, Arnaud III. This latest addition to the Pontac lineage was an influential politician, but despite his political duties he was dedicated to his estate and vineyard, and he did much to establish the reputation of the Pontac wine.

It was in 1666 under the direction of Arnaud III that his son, François-Auguste, who was something of a playboy and far more interested in his estate's wine than any parliamentary role, established the Enseigne de Pontac, what was soon to become one of London's most fashionable inns. Here and in other establishments the Pontac wines would be poured and, if we can believe the words of diarist Samuel Pepys, they were well received. Pepys encountered the wine in the Royal Oak Tavern in Lombard Street on Friday 10th April 1663, writing "here drank a sort of French wine, called Ho Bryan, that hath a good and most particular taste that I never met with". In truth although François-Auguste clearly did some good in marketing Haut-Brion his lifestyle brought him near to bankruptcy more than once, and twice the château and estate were seized in lieu of his debts. It was only the wealth and influence of his wife, Félicie de Crussol d'Uzès, that kept the estate together. Upon his death in 1694 the estate and its associated debts were inherited by his two sisters, Thérèse and Marie-Anne. Thérèse de Pontac seems to have taken the lion's share, two-thirds, whilst her sister's portion passed to the Tresnes family by virtue of her marriage to Jean-Baptiste de la Tresne. Thérèse had married Jean-Denis d'Aulède de Lestonnac in 1654, and their acquisition of the estate brought the Pontac era to a close.

The Fumel Family

In a tragic turn of events within just three weeks of their inheritance Jean-Denis passed away and ownership of the property subsequently fell to their son François-Delphin d'Aulède de Lestonnac who also owned Margaux. With his death in 1746 it was bequeathed to his sister Catherine, the widow of François-Joseph de Fumel, and it was the Fumels that gently steered the estate unwittingly towards the Revolution in the closing years of that century.

After Catherine came Louis de Fumel, her son, although his tenure of Haut-Brion was short. He went to an early grave in 1749, bequeathing the estate to his son Joseph de Fumel. Joseph's work mirrored that of François-Auguste during the Pontac era, as he actively marketed the wine in foreign lands; at home he added formal gardens including an orangery to the Haut-Brion estate, and he augmented the facilities with new buildings. He also formalised the Fumel-Tresnes split, and the Tresnes portion became separated from the Haut-Brion vineyards proper. The wine was increasingly appreciated by notables of the day; Armand-Emmanuel du Plessis, the Duc de Richelieu, found it to be of sufficient quality to introduce it at court where he was in charge of many of the king's daily rituals, and it drew comment from Thomas Jefferson, America's ambassador to France, who visited the estate in 1787.

Fumel himself was a military man, a field marshal and eventual Governor of Guyenne. When the Revolution came, marked most memorably by the storming of the Bastille on July 14th, 1789, Fumel was clearly in a precarious position. He relinquished his ownership of another minor estate, Château Trompette, and he donated much of his wealth to the impoverished, but none of this was enough to stave off the ultimate end-point of all victims of the Terror. In 1794, Fumel went to the guillotine, and Haut-Brion was sequestered by the citizens of the new republic. Although this might logically be seen as the end of the Fumel era, this is not quite true; once the revolutionary fervour had died down Joseph's nephew, Jacques, quietly reacquired the property. Surprisingly it was not that uncommon for relatives to reclaim or buy back supposedly sequestered property after their return from self-imposed extradition outside France. He brought together this property and a portion of vines owned by Joseph's sister, eventually selling the unified property in 1801 to another famous name, Talleyrand.

The Dalliance of Talleyrand

Tallyrand, or Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (shown right) to give him his full title, French foreign minister and distinguished international diplomat, paid a handsome price for his new property and yet despite this he seems to have given it scant attention. He sold it just three years after making his purchase, admittedly for a good profit. It was acquired first by the banker Michel Aîné; he then sold it on to a business partnership comprising a stockbroker and négociant named Comynes and Beyerman respectively. One provided on-site expertise whilst the other I would imagine put up the funds. This arrangement lasted until 1836 when once again the property was put on the market, for sale at auction. It was acquired at a price considerably higher than that achieved with the Talleyrand-Aîné deal, despite the estate's dwindling reputation, and the new owner paying this princely sum was yet another banker, Joseph-Eugène Larrieu.

The wine may have perhaps not been so good as it once had, as noted by authors and merchants of the day, including Lawton in 1815 and Franck in 1824. Nevertheless, despite the prevailing opinion we should not overlook the fact that the wine was of sufficient repute and commanded a sufficiently high price for it not only to be the sole Graves estate included in the 1855 classification of the Médoc, but also for it to be ranked at the very highest level alongside Margaux, Lafite and Latour. All the same, quality certainly declined, as it did for much of Bordeaux during the 19th and 20th centuries, the compound effect of oidium, phylloxera, world war, economic depression and the great frost of 1956.

The Larrieu family, who were also proprietors of Bastor-Lamontagne, continued their tenure at Haut-Brion through many of these travails. Perhaps the most significant development was the purchase of a section of the property from the Countess of Vergennes, that which had been lost to the Tresnes family in 1694 when it was bequeathed to Marie-Anne de Pontac, thereby once more unifying the property. Father was succeeded by son, the second generation Amédée, a lawyer and politician, in 1856, and then third generation Eugène, also a lawyer. The failing estate needed direction and it did not find it in the succession of owners that came in the early years of the 20th century, these including Eugène's nephew, a gentleman named Milleret who gained control at the time of the Great War. He bought out Eugène's niece, who had also gained a share, but then lost the property when the bank, the Companie Algérienne, seized his assets. It passed from the bank to the Société des Glacières in Paris, and was taken under the personal control of society director André Gilbert when he retired. His main aim seems to have been to sue almost any other estate using the name Haut-Brion (Larrivet-Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion being two exceptions), as well as to sell off the gardens to property developers, the land having taken on considerable value as the local suburbs drew near; today this is a fact of life for many estates of Pessac-Léognan which are surrounded by houses and bungalows. It was, it seems, a sorry time to be Haut-Brion. The ailing property would have to wait until the 1930s for a reversal of fortunes.

Dillon & Delmas

Gilbert offered the estate to the city of Bordeaux, to be maintained in memoriam, but he was turned down. In 1935 that probably seemed a wise decision, although with the benefit of hindsight it more closely resembles madness. Following this failure it was the American financier Clarence Dillon that came to Haut-Brion's rescue. Dillon was looking for a property to purchase and with Haut-Brion, Ausone and Cheval-Blanc all on the market he was certainly spoilt for choice. The story goes that Dillon had appointments to view both of these leading St Emilion estates but on the day in question he and his party became disorientated in severe fog, and they abandoned their quest. The result was that Dillon purchased Haut-Brion on May 13th that year, the price being 2.3 million francs, and the property has remained with the Dillon family ever since.

It might seem strange for a Harvard-educated Texan to desire ownership of a Bordeaux château, but perhaps less so if we consider the man for a moment. Dillon's mother was of French descent, and although Dillon worked for the American bank Read (where he was so successful he ultimately became director, the bank renamed Dillon Read & Co.) he was clearly well acquainted with France and her charms. He spent his honeymoon in France, a sojourn that expanded into a two-year sabbatical, and from 1929 he owned an apartment in Paris which he would frequently visit with his wife. He came to love the country and the acquisition of a grand property, for someone who enjoyed such financial success, was perhaps the natural next step.

Although in family ownership a limited company, the Société Vinicole de la Gironde (the forerunner of today's Domaine Clarence Dillon SA), was established, a necessary step to prevent division of the estate when passing from one generation to the next. Control shifted from Clarence to his nephew Seymour Weller, the offspring of his wife's sister, who ran the estate with the advice and expertise first of manager and winemaker Georges Delmas (who had taken up his post in 1921) and then his son Jean-Bernard (who succeeded him in 1960), before his retirement (although he still consults at a number of properties, most notably Montrose) to be replaced by the next generation, Jean-Philippe Delmas (pictured above, right), in 2003. Although it is only natural that any profile should focus on illustrious, successful and in some cases royal owners, we must not let these names slide out of the limelight. Without doubt, whatever success is enjoyed by Haut-Brion today, much of it can be attributed to the skill and direction of the Delmas dynasty.

When Seymour finally retired in 1975, aged 83, control passed to Clarence's granddaughter Joan, who first married Charles de Luxembourg and then, after his death, was wedded to Philippe de Noailles, the Duc de Mouchy. Today royal titles can still be found here; Prince Robert of Luxembourg (pictured above, left) currently heads up Domaine Clarence Dillon SA and can on occasion be found welcoming guests to the property. He, working alongside Jean-Philippe Delmas, is the other side of the driving force behind today's Haut-Brion.

Haut-Brion: The Vineyard

Vines have been cultivated here for at least six centuries, in a vineyard once surrounded by pasture and parkland, now by suburban houses. Despite the encroaching reality of the 21st century, within the walls of the Haut-Brion there lies an excellent terroir, typical of Bordeaux in that it revolves around two gravel croupes - the same can be said for many of the leading estates of the Médoc. These gravelly mounds rise to the heady altitude of 15 metres, a lofty summit compared to much of the surrounding land, providing two south-east facing slopes perfect for the vine. The soils include ancient stones washed down from the Pyrenees over many millennia, Gunzian gravel peppered with quartz and related minerals, hardened conglomerates of stone and flint. All in all there are just over 51 hectares of vines which are cared for by vineyard manager Pascal Baratié, who also looks after the vineyard of neighbouring La Mission Haut-Brion.

The vines found there are 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, red varieties dominating the vineyard. The white varieties are, as is typical for the region, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon; there is no Muscadelle or indeed any other variety planted commercially, although in an authorised experimental area there are 2 hectares of some very atypical varieties including Sangiovese and even Pinot Noir, as well as Malbec and other varieties perhaps more readily associated with Bordeaux. These oddities will naturally pique our interest but it is the clonal research carried out here, involving the cultivation of more than 370 clones of the three main Bordeaux varieties acquired both commercially and from the French Institute for Agronomic Research (INRA), that is perhaps of much greater viticultural significance. Having planted these clones in a micro-vineyard established by Jean-Bernard Delmas in 1970, the aim of the research program has been to identify which are suitable for introduction into the vineyards of Bordeaux. And there has been success; a number of clones are indeed now planted out in the Haut-Brion vineyard.

Come harvest time this is naturally achieved by hand, the ripe fruit delivered with care to the reception and fermentation areas. The fruit is first destemmed and transferred into vat, and the fermentation depends on naturally present yeasts. The vessels in question are stainless steel vats, the first of which were installed under the direction of Jean-Bernard Delmas and oenologist Emile Peynaud in 1961, at the time a unique investment as elsewhere (except perhaps in the Champagne region) wood was the norm. What caused eyebrows to rise then has today become an almost universal practice. Today there are double-skinned fermentation vessels, new in 1991, with temperature control, limiting the fermenting must to a maximum of 33ºC. There then follows a period of post-fermentation maceration to enhance extraction of colour and tannin from the solids. Under the direction of régisseur Jean-Philippe Masclef and Jean-Philippe Delmas the wine is then run off into oak barrels which may be fashioned on-site in a dedicated facility also inaugurated in 1991, where it may slumber for up to 24 months, occasionally even longer, before bottling. What results is the grand vin Château Haut-Brion, and also a second wine, for many years entitled Bahans Haut-Brion but, from the 2007 vintage onwards rechristened Clarence de Haut-Brion, in honour of Clarence Dillon. Of course there is also the white Haut-Brion, a classic Bordeaux Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc blend which often vies for the position of top dry white wine in any Bordeaux vintage.

Haut-Brion: The Wines

This profile of Haut-Brion is one of the last to be added to the Bordeaux section of this site. Certainly the other first growths have long been dealt with, Latour, Lafite, Margaux and the elevated Mouton having had a presence here for several years. This delay does not reflect any lesser opinion of Haut-Brion and, in fact, on the few occasions I have encountered the wines I have frequently been wowed. Indeed, as I explained in my introduction above, it is this paucity of experience of this grand estate and her wines that has caused the delay. Of all the first growths this is the one I know least well, and this is disappointing when considering how much I have enjoyed those wines I have tasted.

Critics are fairly united in praise for Haut-Brion. Certainly, there are vintages which divide opinion, and some that receive criticism. And on occasion some will debate its position vis-à-vis La Mission Haut-Brion, a neighbouring property also under the direction of Domaine Clarence Dillon SA, with some coming down in favour of one and some the other, depending on the vintage naturally. This can be witnessed in the annual primeur tasting of Haut-Brion which is offered in the elegantly ecclesiastical tasting room at La Mission Haut-Brion when both wines, and both their second wines (as well as the corresponding white wines) are lined up for tasting; it is only natural for tasters to rate one against the other, to pass judgement on which wine has fared best in that particular year. For me, in 2008, it was Haut-Brion, a monumental effort that provided a serious challenge for 'wine of the vintage' (a title which ultimately went to Latour in my opinion). I felt the same way about the 2007 vintage, but I know others preferred La Mission.

More ancient vintages have not, on the whole, been presented to me. The 2004 is certainly a superb effort, but it hardly counts as ancient! The 1961, however, will soon fit that bill. A wine with an excellent reputation, however, I am sorry to say the only time I encountered it the wine was suspect, perhaps the victim of poor storage. What a tragedy.

Nevertheless, although I possess an opinion based on tasting a very narrow range of vintages, I have already come to adore these wines. They are visceral, earthy yet elegant, balanced and harmonious. They take what other properties of Pessac-Léognan offer and seem to turn up the volume, offering greater intensity, depth and breadth of flavour and yet they manage to avoid caricature, remaining classically Graves, classically Bordeaux. They are wines which, had I the financial clout, I would be ferreting away in the cellar like there was no tomorrow, alongside my imaginary stash of La Mission and other Graves stalwarts such as Haut-Bailly. These are wines which I wholeheartedly - as I suspect my tasting notes below make clear - recommend. (15/9/09, updated 20/10/11)

Contact details:
Address: 135, avenue Jean Jaurès, 33600 Pessac
Telephone: +33 (0) 5 56 00 29 30
Fax: +33 (0) 5 56 98 75 14
Internet: www.haut-brion.com
GPS: 44.816622, -0.608625

Château Haut-Brion - Tasting Notes

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White Wines

Château Haut-Brion Blanc (Pessac-Léognan) 2010: Semillon 46%, Sauvignon Blanc 54%.The alcohol here is 14.4%. A beautifully polished style, bright and with good fruit intensity, but with a pithy freshness to it as well. A really fresh character on the palate, although it shows a rather fatter substance through the middle taking on here a really deep character. Very rich, still surrounding by a grippy frame of tannin, with an impressive energetic style to it. This is wonderfully stylish. A great combination of spice and depth here, especially in the end. Super stuff. From my Bordeaux 2010 primeurs assessment. 17.5-18.5/20 (April 2011)

La Clarté de Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2010: This is the common second wine to La Mission and Haut-Brion Blanc. Semillon 83%, Sauvignon Blanc 17%. The alcohol here is 13.8%. The fruit aromatics seem fairly muted, but with a polished yellow plum style which I like. The palate though is more appealing, the lovely substance and grip coming from the Semillon here, fine fruit and in the finish there is a very stylish grip and broad presence. A very pleasing style, with polished fruit, lovely freshness, rather a pithy grip to it, and certainly plenty of vibrancy. A delicious finish! From my Bordeaux 2010 primeurs assessment. 16-17/20 (April 2011)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2010: Cabernet Sauvignon 57%, Merlot 23%, Cabernet Franc 20%. The alcohol here is 14.6%. A very dark and restrained hue here, concentrated with a black plum character. Vibrant and yet totally opaque. Oh my, the nose. There is such purity here, such definition, a pure essence of blackcurrant and damson. What follows on the palate is a defined, rolling and sweet layer of fruit, which glides across the palate revealing as it does so a wonderfully fine tannic structure, displaying the wine's powerful substance but keeping it all very balanced and in keeping with the wine. The tannic substance is wonderful, the tannins showing a sooty density although they have a deep, velvety texture. Fantastic substance here. Really great wine but there is a very certain substance to it especially in the finish. Really super despite the higher alcohol here. From my Bordeaux 2010 primeurs assessment. 18.5-19.5/20 (April 2011)

Le Clarence de Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2010: This is the second wine of Haut-Brion. Merlot 56%, Cabernet Sauvignon 36%, Cabernet Franc 10%, Petit Verdot 2%. The alcohol here is 14.4%. Great concentration on the colour again, darker than La Chapelle, with a slightly more matt character at the rim. Rather more withdrawn on the nose, some dark plum fruit here, but certainly not as expressive as the La Chapelle. Lovely plum fruit, with a very linear and defined presence on the palate though, with evident structure underpinning everything here. The structure is really firm and grippy, the tannins really like dense rubbed velvet, really coating the mouth, and yet remaining peripheral, not taking over the wine despite the really very firm grip they have. It has a fine acid freshness too. Great promise here. This is a second wine that will need decades. Rather a lot of extraction here although it maintains energy. Also a little spice here in the finish. From my Bordeaux 2010 primeurs assessment. 17-18/20 (April 2011)

White Wines

Château Haut-Brion Blanc (Pessac-Léognan) 2009: No name change here - so at least I come to this wine less confused than with some! The blend here is different to the other white Haut-Brion wines, with 62% Sauvignon Blanc and 38% Semillon (the latter dominates in the others). Beautifully ripe pears and passion fruit on the nose here, fine and exotic but well framed. Appealingly fresh and yet substantial on the palate, characterful, fleshy but with vigour and direction. Creamed fruit with a lovely core of pith and lively fruit flesh, wonderfully defined and vivacious and also broad and clean. Delicious wine which would be very easy to drink now. From my 2009 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 18-19+/20 (March 2010)

La Clarté de Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2009: The new name for Les Plantiers, the common second wine to La Mission and Haut-Brion Blanc. This is 84% Semillon and 16% Sauvignon Blanc. Beautifully fresh, slightly watery fruit here but with a very clean pear and freshly cut apple character. Nice palate, gentle substance, moderate acidity and slightly plump flavours. Some grip underneath, nicely done overall although not that exciting. Could be good value though. From my 2009 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 15.5-16.5+/20 (March 2010)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2009: The blend here is 46% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Cabernet Franc. Alcohol 14.3%, the highest ever figure (2005 in second place with 14%). Accounts for 57% of the harvest. A darker hue than Le Clarence, and a darker rim. Reticent on the nose, sweet but dusty at the same time. The fruit character although very restrained has a plump, plum and damson character to it, and although very ripe it doesn't move into the raisined spectrum, but it does have a faint edge of alcohol-macerated cherry - just a whisper, but it is there. Very soft and sweet on the start, full and very creamy, seems almost top-heavy at first. The texture is really quite fat, with some vibrantly peppery acidity cutting down the core of the wine. There is a lot of substance and spice here, with a very soft feel that doesn't quite have enough focus to please, possibly a warm-vintage Merlot effect? Perhaps with élevage this will come together and tighten up, but right now I don't find it as convincing as I think I should. Nevertheless it is a very good wine, but I recall finding the 2008 more convincing than this when I tasted it last year. From my 2009 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 18-19+/20 (March 2010)

Le Clarence de Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2009: This is the second wine of Haut-Brion, and is 46% Merlot, 39% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Alcohol 14%. Appealing hue. Youthful rim. The nose has well honed fruit, clean and reserved, with a touch of smoky depth. Elegant texture on entry, very supple in style, then the tannins come in. These have a grainy character, giving a feeling of backbone to the wine. The acidity is on the subtle side, although there is plenty of peppery grip and vigour, and an appealing, straight-cut line to it. Well framed, with a fair length. From my 2009 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 16-17+/20 (March 2010)

White Wines

Château Haut-Brion Blanc (Pessac-Léognan) 2008: In this vintage this is 79% Semillon and 21% Sauvignon Blanc. It has a much rounder style than Laville, with a more polished, creamy-stony, honeyed yellow fruit. The palate is fat, slightly mineral, with a chalky touch. Really cleanly defined, stylish, with hints of tropical fruit. Rich, with a creamy underbelly, this has huge potential. Brilliant wine. From my 2008 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 18-19+/20 (April 2009)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2008: This is 41% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 9% Cabernet Franc. Just 7000 cases this year reflecting the low yields (for comparison, 2004 was 14000 cases). Just 35% went into the grand vin, what remained into Le Clarence, and a significant proportion sold off. Dense, firm, tight fruit on the nose, with a dark, pure, intense and smoky character. Immediately there is evident class here. The entry is textured, powerful but defined, and the midpalate is layered, substantial, with great structure. It has massive grip, although it also has balance, with a pure and smooth tannic structure beneath rich, firm fruit. And an amazing length too. Great wine, and a candidate for wine of the vintage. From my 2008 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 18.5-19.5+/20 (April 2009)

Le Clarence de Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2008: This is the second wine of Haut-Brion. Deep and smoky character on the nose. The palate has a good appealing substance, although it maintains a very fresh and stony character. Rich in tannin, giving a very firm feel, with a moderate weight of fruit and good acids. A full, substantially structured wine, with some length. From my 2008 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 15.5-16.5+/20 (April 2009)

White Wines

Château Haut-Brion Blanc (Pessac-Léognan) 2007: Alcohol 13.9%. A different style here on the nose, but still showing the oak more than anything else at present, an appealing honeycomb and gritty toffee character, with some rich although leafy fruit. The blend here is quite different to the Laville, 45% Semillon and 55% Sauvignon Blanc. The palate is lively, fleshy and supple, showing quite some weight. Nevertheless it is full of fruit complexity, richness, structure, presented a delicious, harmonious style. Vivacity too. Lots of potential here. From my 2007 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 17.5-18.5+/20 (April 2008)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2007: This feels quite withdrawn, especially so in comparison to La Mission Haut-Brion which is starting to show a more attractive, perfumed bouquet. This is a superficial reticence though, and underneath this the perceived style is one of meaty concentration. As it opens up in the glass it reveals a crisper, stylish, red-fruit perfume, and there are suggestion of white flower petals here too. And then there are little notes of vanilla pod, and fruit, with a fine gentle polish to it. Attractive, lightly fleshed out, direct and balanced, not quite showing the definition and direction displayed by La Mission at this point though. Even so the structure seems well integrated and the wine certainly has potential. From my tasting of 2007 Pessac-Léognan at four years of age. 16.5/20 (November 2011)

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2007: This is dense, smoky, brooding and suggestive of depth, with a little meaty vein to the fruit on the nose. Here we have 43% Merlot, 44% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Cabernet Franc, and 43% of the harvest so there should be 8900 cases produced. It is weightier than Le Clarence, a little plummy and fleshy, but still elegant. There is a lot of evident structure, with a supple composition laid over a core of firm tannins. A little length here. A good wine with potential, although it is not overtly expressed. From my 2007 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 16-17+/20 (April 2008)

Le Clarence de Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2007: This is the second wine of Haut-Brion, once Bahans de Haut-Brion but renamed Le Clarence with the 2007 vintage. As with La Chapelle below Merlot dominates, but only with 51% of the blend, the rest being 34% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc. It accounts for 36% of the harvest. On the nose it has a light, aromatic, stony and even slightly gamey fruit. There is some nice flesh on entry, with a supple, sappy character, and it holds its own in the midpalate although there is a lot of pepper and grip exposed here. More attractive texture and flesh than the second wine of La Mission. From my 2007 Bordeaux primeur assessment. 15-16+/20 (April 2008)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2006: A glossy hue, vibrant, moderate density. The nose is exquisitely lifted rather than dense, a central core of perfumed fruits, violets and heavenly woodland fruits, backed up by darker layers behind, at first suggestive of gravel and pebbles, then some charcoal, tobacco leaf and dark green mint, but at all times it is the crisply-lifted perfume that impresses most of all. It is simply captivating. Elegant, balanced, with a ripe tannic structure just peeping through a blanket of light fruits. A very brightly defined palate, lots of acidity coming in here, and a very precise violet perfume alongside. The meaty, stocky element sometimes found in Haut-Brion plays a subtle and minor role here. A long finish, still with that bright acidity carrying the wine along. A very fine effort, with good typicity too, although with more floral elements dominant on this tasting. Given time this should be superb. From my tasting of 2006 Pessac-Léognan at four years of age. 18+/20 (November 2010)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2005: A very fine nose here, pure, bright and well-framed. Dark yet perfumed, with notes of bright balsamic, flower petals, dark herbs. It has purity and elegance on the palate, a twisting presence first of gently defined linear fruit, then a core of creamy, velvety tannins with just a hint of graininess to them. Remarkably structured, firm and somewhat brooding, but with a tangible texture to the fruit within. Quite gentle acidity, but well balanced, with grip and length, this is a prodigious effort that will be just divine with the appropriate period of cellaring. From my tasting of 2005 Bordeaux at four years of age. 19.5+/20 (November 2009)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 2004: This has dark, rather meaty, very slightly high-toned fruit on the nose, with a deeply buried, beefy-Bovril character. There is much of this character on the nose which is very interesting. The palate is dense, but elegant and harmonious, with a creamy but not fat style. There is restraint, with a beautifully composed structure, the grip and acid framing the elegant although rather meaty fruit perfectly. It has a bright and lifted texture, and overall a beautiful style with dense complexity. It finishes very well, and has great length. Just excellent. From my assessment of 2004 Bordeaux at four years. 18.5+/20 (November 2008)

Red Wines

Bahans Haut-Brion (Pessac-Léognan) 1992: The second wine of Haut-Brion. Second wines in weak vintages don't usually provide interesting drinking, but this was an exception. Good purple colour with an orange-tawny hint throughout. The nose is curranty and herbaceous, with gravelly fruit and a hint of toasty oak. A soft, supple palate, with integrated tannins and balanced acidity. Mineral fruit, with pleasant extract. A touch harsh on the finish, a sign this wine will deteriorate from now on I think. Drink up. 16/20 (January 2001)

Red Wines

Château Haut-Brion (Graves) 1961: A wine that predates the creation of the Pessac-Léognan appellation of course, so this is labelled as Graves. Another wine with a very deep colour. Another oxidised nose here, rather like the Cheval Blanc that preceded it, but nowhere near as obvious. This has a toffee, nutty, vegetal character which is certainly not typical of Graves. Another wine that has gone over hill with storage again the suspect. From a 1961 Bordeaux tasting. Not scored. (June 2007)