Haut Brion

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Wine	Vintage	Case size	Price/case	Cases	Parker Score hover or click for more
Bahans Haut Brion	2001	12×75cl	£680	10	88
Always one of Bordeaux’s finest second wines, the 2001 Bahans-Haut-Brion exhibits a dark plum/ruby color as well as a sweet nose of cedar, earth, and red and black currants. Medium-bodied, with a supple texture, fine purity, and admirable length, it will drink well for 5-8 years.
Haut Brion	2003	6×75cl	£1,625	2	95
The blockbuster 2003 Haut-Brion (13% alcohol) possesses extremely high tannin, but that component is well-concealed by a cascade of mulberry, blackberry, cherry, and plum-like fruit. There is even a hint of figs under the blue and red fruit spectrum. While broad and ripe with a sweet, glyceral mouthfeel as well as a long, powerful, persistent finish, it retains its elegance and nobility. A wine of both power and finesse, it will benefit from 3-4 years of cellaring, and keep for 25-30.
Haut Brion	2004	12×75cl	£2,900	3	92
Medium to deep garnet colour. The nose is still a little mute giving a moderate intensity of youthful aromas: ripe plums, cassis, Chinese five spice, moss and a fair amount of cedar. Oak tannins seem to dominate the structure contributing to the taut astringency of the palate yet there is a good amount of ripe berry and earthy fruit plus medium acidity to balance. Long earthy finish. Drink 2012 to 2034. Tasted February 2009.
Haut Brion	2006	6×75cl	£1,650	10	96
The 2006 Haut-Brion performed even better from bottle than it did from barrel. Sixty-four percent of the production went into this wine, and while it displays the vintage’s powerful tannins and structure, it possesses superb concentration, and the minerality/scorched earth notes of a great Haut-Brion. Medium to full-bodied, with perhaps not quite the fleshiness of the 2005 or 2000, it is built more along the lines of the 1998 and 1996. It is a brilliant effort displaying sensational purity, texture, and length that should be exceptionally long-lived. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2035 .
Haut Brion	2009	12×75cl	£7,400	2	98-100
There are 10,500 cases of the 2009 Haut-Brion, from a blend of 46% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 14% Cabernet Franc. For technicians, the highest ever natural alcohol, 14.3%, was achieved, with a pH of 3.9, which is about the same as the 1989 and 1990, as well as 1959. This is the kind of wine to send chills even up my spine, and I have been tasting here for nearly 30 years. An extraordinary nose of plum, blueberry, raspberry, crushed rock, and that intriguing floral as well as unsmoked cigar tobacco note (a classic sign of this terroir) is followed by a wine of creamy unctuosity reminiscent of 1989, but there is a freshness, vibrancy and precision that is historic and possibly unprecedented. Some graphite emerges as the wine sits in the glass, but the wine is very thick while at the same time precise and elegant. This is the quintessential expression of one of the greatest wine terroirs of the world. To reiterate, the good news is that there are going to be 10,500 cases of Haut-Brion in 2009, which is about 1,500 more cases than the 9,000 produced in 2005. This wine will probably need 7-8 years of cellaring when released and evolve as well as the 1959 has (which is still a perfect wine today), so we’re realistically talking 50-75 years when stored in a cool cellar. (Tasted once.)
Haut BrionEP	2010	12×75cl	£6,900	1	98-100
RP: 98-100 2010 Haut-Brion: Following a harvest that finished on October 10, Haut-Brion produced a 2010 that should turn out to be one of its all-time greats ... an amazing feat given what they have accomplished over recent vintages. A blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc that came in at 14.6% alcohol, the 2010 boasts an opaque purple color as well as a gorgeous perfume of scorched earth/burning embers, blueberries, black currant liqueur and crushed rocks. Full and opulent with nobility, finesse, purity and elegance, this amazing effort possesses extraordinary levels of extract as well as formidable, but sweet, well-integrated tannins. It requires 8-10 years of cellaring and should drink well for 50+ years. JR: 18 23% Merlot, 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc. 7,800 cases, not 10,000+ as in 2009. 42% grand vin (compared with 57% in 2009). Full, opulent nose in which the classic Haut-Brion aroma is well masked by lots of slightly austere fruit. Very fine tannins – very drying finish. An extremely slow burner. Much drier than La Mission, and at the moment not desperately expressive. Its lips are pursed at the moment, and so are mine tasting it. Unusual to come across such a long-term wine even here. This may not make a massive impact en primeur because it is keeping so much in reserve. I think it will eventually make a great wine but it’s surly at the moment. Decanter: 19.5 Stunning aromas of beautifully concentrated red fruits, already expressive, even exuberant, a taffeta-like finesse hides great strength for the long term. Drink 2020-45. Neil Martin: 96-98 A blend of 23% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc, this has a quintessential Haut-Brion nose with that trait of fresh black olives defining the nose straight out of the blocks. It is a little less opulent than La Mission but with slightly better clarity at this stage. The palate displays very fine, succulent tannins and like the La Mission there is a Pauillac-like personality thanks to the graphite imparted by the ripe Cabernet Sauvignon. Wonderful definition towards the finish. This is a superb Haut-Brion. Tasted March 2011.
La Mission Haut Brion	2001	12×75cl	£1,575	3	91
Like its more famous neighbor, Haut-Brion, the 2001 La Mission Haut-Brion has closed down considerably since bottling. A blend of 62% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc, it possesses an inky/purple color (deeper than Haut-Brion’s) in addition to a tight but promising bouquet of scorched earth, wood, tar, black currants, and a hint of hickory wood. Medium-bodied, firm, muscular, and virile, it is a candidate for long term cellaring. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2020+.
La Mission Haut Brion	2004	12×75cl	£1,350	5	90
While La Mission Haut-Brion’s 2004 is not one of this estate’s top successes, it is an outstanding wine, no doubt because of this extraordinary terroir. Deep ruby/purple with notes of lead pencil shavings intermixed with black cherries, cassis, and a hint of scorched earth, medium body, sweet tannin, and a good, but uninspiring finish, this attractive, mid-weight La Mission should age nicely for 15 or more years.
La Mission Haut Brion	2006	12×75cl	£2,300	2	95
One of the vintage’s top wines is the 2006 La Mission-Haut-Brion. From bottle, it reminds me of the 1998, given its structure and backward style. Dense ruby/purple-colored, it possesses a boatload of tannin, but with coaxing, tobacco leaf, sweet black currant, burning ember, and blue fruit characteristics emerge. While thick and full-bodied, the tannins seem more elevated than I remember from barrel. It is going to be a beauty, but like many of the top 2006s, considerable patience is required. Only 55% of the production made it into the grand vin as Jean-Philippe Delmas made a severe selection. The final blend was 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2006 has one of the highest natural alcohols ever achieved at La Mission, averaging around 14.3%, which is astonishingly high for a Graves. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2035.
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Chateau Haut-Brion

The most famous property in Pessac-Leognan, the northernmost corner of the Graves district of Bordeaux, today managed alongside La Mission Haut-Brion (purchased 1983) of the same appellation. Its well-documented reputation no doubt led to its position as the earliest chateaux to be cited as designated 1er Cru Classe in the famous 1855 Classification of Bordeaux; indeed it is the only such wine to be so outside the Medoc.

The history of Chateau Haut-Brion can be traced back further than that of any other Bordeaux classed growth, with wine from the estate recorded in the cellar entries of King Charles II of England (1630-1685) as ‘wine of Hobriono’ to be served to the monarch’s guests. During this time Samuel Pepys made his famous entry in his diary of 10 April 1663 ‘drank a sort of French wine called Ho Bryen that hath a good and most particular taste I never met with’. Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), meanwhile, an early American Ambassador to France, noted the quality of Haut-Brion in his 1787 trip famous for his pre-1855 identification of some of Bordeaux’s finest vineyards, extant to this day.

By the early C20th, however, the chateau had fallen into disrepair but saw a reversal of fortune with its purchase in 1935 by Clarence Dillon, an American banker. Dillon undertook a series of restorative innovations most notable in the skilled hands of winemaker Jean-Bernard during the latter half of the C20th. Today the estate is run by Dillon’s great-grandson, Prince Robert of Luxemburg and Jean-Philippe, son of the now retired Jean-Bernard.

Vineyard and winemaking

The estate’s 45 ha/111 acres of vineyards are planted to 45 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon vines, 18 per cent Cabernet Franc and 37 per cent Merlot;Haut Brion Blanc, a rare dry white, is grown on 2.7ha. of vineyard and made from some 63 per cent Sémillon and 37 per cent Sauvignon Blanc vines. Its scarcity means that it is rarely seen.

Red wine fermentation takes place in stainless steel vats followed by 22 months in new oak barriques bordelaise (225 l/59 gal) then bottled unfiltered. Haut Brion Blanc sees fermentation in new oak and then spends 12-15 months on its lees before bottling.

Production at Haut-Brion is smaller than that of the other First Growth wines, averaging around 13, 000 cases per year; it can be as much as 20,000 cases. This is shared between the Grand Vin and second wine, formerly Bahans-Haut-Brion (non-vintage until 1976) and changed to Clarence de Haut-Brion for the 2007 vintage in memory of Clarence Dillon. Less than 800 cases of Haut Brion Blanc are produced in most years.

The connoisseur’s First Growth, whose high Merlot content compared to the remaining First Growths, is responsible for its silky voluptuousness, whereby in youth it provides approachable finesse before its Médoc contemporaries without any detraction from its ability to age.

The classiest wine of Pessac-Leognan, Haut-Brion is text-book Graves displaying Montecristo cigar-box aroma, richly fruited cassis and plum with depth of flavor from its spicy, earthy notes.

Haut Brion

	RP	JR	Market price	£/Parker point
2009	98-100	19	7200	£ 72.73
2008	95-97	18	5200	£ 54.17
2005	98	17.5+	6100	£ 62.24
2003	95	17	3890	£ 40.95
2000	99	18+	7600	£ 80.00
1998	96	18	4450	£ 46.84
1995	96	18	4600	£ 48.42
1990	98	18.5	6800	£ 71.58
1989	100	19	13950	£ 146.84
1982	95	17.5	7650	£ 80.53

Prices as of end-March 2011

Market (Price development & background)

Beloved by both the trade and critics and with an apparently broader following than Laifte, Haut-Brion had seen a steady softening of prices over the last 6 years and remains below its high-point of 2004. However, 2010 and the first quarter of 2011 have seen steady price rises driven by strong brand awareness and a perceived quality-backed undervalued status vs. v the remaining first growths, evinced by the market-wide tendency of buying-up lesser scoring recent vintages such as 2001, 2004 and 2007.

This broad-based strengthening of demand for Haut-Brion is a sure indication of a slight broadening of the market among the first growths, along with what would appear to be a widening of the market overall.

Haut-Brion at a glance

Commune: Pessac-Leognan

Soils: Similar to Medoc (gravels, sand and clay) with more variation in depth

Climate: Maritime but milder than the Medoc

District: Graves, Left bank south of the Medoc below Bordeaux and parallel to the Garonne river

Classification: 1er Cru Classe

Owner: The Dillon family

Wine-maker: Jean-Phillipe (2003) following father Jean-Bernard (1960)

Vineyard: 45ha/111 acres

- 42.3ha: 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, 37% Merlot

- 2.7ha: 63% Semillon, 37% Sauvignon Blanc

Vinification and ageing: stainless steel, 22 months in new oak barriques

Production: avg 13, 000 cases, maximum 20, 0000 cases

Wines: Haut-Brion (Grand Vin); Clarence de Haut-Brion (second wine); Haut-Brion Blanc

Other properties: La Mission Haut-Brion (Pessac-Leognan)

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