La Mission Haut Brion

Château La Mission Haut Brion

 

La Mission Haut Brion is one of the most esteemed of all Bordeaux chateaux, so much so as to be considered the unofficial 6^th Growth. Indeed, it is widely stated that in any such re-classification of the Medoc, of the many expected changes it is La Mission Haut Brtion that would first find place alongside its first growth peers. Unlike its peers, however, it is to be found in the Graves district south of the Medoc, precisely, the in that northern portion of the Graves that borders the Medoc, Pessac-Leognan.

The history of La Mission is cited circa 1540 when an already productive parcel of vines, the Arregedhuys, was sold to Arnaud de Lestonnac, an important Bordeaux merchant and contempory of Jean de Pontac. Jean de Pontac’s only sister, Marie de Pontac, became Arnaud’s wife.  Both men were from the Bordelaise nobility, each would found significant Bordeaux dynasties, serving in high public office and each knew about of the important winemaking potential of the Graves, a region whose reputation was then already underway. 

Inheritance laws led, almost by accident, to the estate moving to the Lestonnac family, through Olive de Lestonnac, who, in a move unpopular with her family, gave it to the local order, the Congregation of the Mission. This was officalised in 1664 by Catherine de Mullet, a family member who would otherwise have been the then current owner of the estate. In 1698 a small chapel was in built within the vineyards known as Norte Dame de La Mission, and then in 1713 the chateau building itself was raised on the property. At that point the estate was part of the Roman Catholic Church to remain so until the French Revolution at which time it was sold off at auction.

The early 19^th century saw the first entrance of American owners in the Medoc. In 1815 the Chiapelle family from Louisiana, being in the trade themselves, bought La Mission Haut Brion. Previously they had worked in estate management in Bordeaux working at a number of chateaux, including Cos d’Estournel and planned for retirement at La Mission. It was the Chiapelle family who designed and built the famous gates that today guard the entranced to this historic property. In 1855, at the time of classification, it is of certain note that despite the fact that La Mission Haut Brion selling for prices that equaled or surpassed the second growths, the estate was not included in the classification even though Chateau Haut Brion, also from Pessac Leognan, was.

As events would have it, another American family, the Woltners, bought the property in 1919 to steward it through the 20^th century until 1983 when it was bought by the current generation of Americans, the Dillons. A series of renovations followed, in the vineyards, the chateau and cellar that continued until 1996, with work on the chai, the French and in particular Bordeaux term for where the wine is stored (typically in barrel), being completed only recently.

In 2005, plots that had been in quality wine production since before the time of the de Lestonnacs and Pontacs – most recently producing the Graves classed growth Chateau La Tour Haut Brion – were merged with the vineyards of La Mission Haut Brion. From these, in 2006, there was produced an outstanding second wine, La Chapelle La Mission Haut Brion to complement what is considered as one of the finest whites of Bordeaux, Laville Haut Brion, now called La Mission Haut Brion Blanc.

 

 

Style

La Mission Haut Brion is marked by depth, class and complexity, a richly fruited wine of charm and intensity.  Above all, however, La Mission stands out for being perhaps the most consistent wine over the past half century, more so than any comparable Bordeaux wine.

 

Top-rated vintages

Vintage	RP	JR	Market price £	£ / Parker points
2010	98-100	18	6,700	67.67
2009	98-100	19	6,100	61.61
2000	100	18	6,100	61.00
1982	100	18	10,200	102.00
1975	100	17.5	14,200	142.00
1959	100	19.5
1989	99	18.5	9,600	96.97
As per July 2011

 

Market

With its reputation as one of the great classic wines, an ever more widely acknowledged peer status among the first growths and its consistency, even in off-vintages, La Mission Haut Brion is one the best positioned of chateaux to take advantage of a market that is now expanding more than ever before.

 

Liv-ex Power 100 ranking

2010	total score	2009	move
8	111	30	+22

As per June 2011

The Liv-ex Power 100 is a list of the top performers over the previous year and their position starting the current year.  The indice traces the movement of chateau and other wines using a sophisticated weighting system based on average prices, production, notional availability and Parker Points.

 

Release price evolution

Vintage	ex Negociant € / btl	London release price £ / cs
2010	600	6,400
2009	540	6,200
2008	110	1,270
2007	195	1,950
2006	330	2,950
2005	145	1,800

 

La Mission Haut Brion at a glance

Commune: Pessac Leognan

Soils: on deep gravely soil over clay and sand

Climate: maritime

District: Graves

Classification: 

Owner: Domaine Clarence Dillon

Winemaker: Jean-Philippe Delmas

Vineyard: 24ha/64 acres planted to 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc

Vinification and ageing:stainless steel vats and then matured in oak barriques (100% new) for 18 months.

Production: 6,000 – 7,000 cases of the Grand Vin and 4,000 of La Chapelle de la Mission. La Mission Haut Brion Blanc: 500 – 700 cases.

Other wines: La Chapelle de la Mission, La Mission Haut Brion Blanc, La Clarte de Haut Brion (previously Les Plantiers du Haut Brion).