Producer | Haut Brion |
Country | France |
Region | Bordeaux |
Subregion | Pessac-Leognan |
Varietal | Bordeaux Blend |
Vintage | 2021 |
Sku | 1006849 |
Size | 750ml |
16 May 2022 ? A very structured young Haut-Brion with blackberry blackcurrant black-olive and mushroom character. Medium to full-bodied with a driving balance of firm and ripe tannins and gorgeous fruit. 50.3% merlot 38% cabernet sauvignon and 11.7% cabernet franc.
A candidate for the title of wine of the vintage the 2021 Haut-Brion unwinds in the glass with aromas of rich red and black fruit mingled with notions of cigar wrapper licorice black truffles loamy soil and burning embers. Full-bodied deep and concentrated it's elegant and multidimensional with superb depth at the core lively acids and ultra-refined tannins. Combining the classical proportions of the vintages of two decades ago with the viticultural and winemaking of today it's a timeless classic in the making but it's difficult to find an obvious analogy with an older vintage. When pressed Jean-Philippe Delmas suggests a superior version of the 2014 vintage and to me a more concentrated serious version of the 2012 vintage also comes to mind. What is clear however is that this is one of the real high points of 2021. The blend is 50% Merlot 38% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Cabernet Franc and it attained 13.8% alcohol?a percentage point or so lower than in 2020 or 2019.
The 2021 Haut-Brion is all class all finesse. Naturally the overt intensity of recent vintages is replaced by a more understated style in 2021. Silky tannins caress a core of dark cherry/plum fruit. Hints of lavender new leather cloves and menthol gradually open. The trademark Haut-Brion aromatics are going to need a number of years in bottle to develop. The 2021 is hardly a blockbuster and yet in many ways it is so primary.
A classical balance reflecting a vintage that is fairly strict in its aromatic expression exceptionally successful on this spot. Soft cassis bud rose petal and rose stem subdued power that gently builds over the palate. Unquestionably a different architecture to Haut-Brion than over the past few years and there is a sculpted feel to the cassis and bilberry fruits still with concentration and weight through the palate expertly constructed. Feels like a window to the past and is delicious. Harvest September 13 to October 8 with no Petit Verdot used this year. 73% new oak.
twiThe 2021 Haut-Brion is a blend of 50% Merlot 38% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored it needs a lot of swirling and convincing to coax out notions of redcurrant jelly raspberry coulis blackcurrant pastilles and graphite plus suggestions of cloves crushed rocks and underbrush. Medium-bodied the palate is a little like sucking on stones at this stage chock full of minerals with emerging black and red fruits framed by ripe grainy tannins and just enough freshness finishing long and earthy. A very different style and expression of Haut-Brion than in recent years and yet this is equally evocative and simply gorgeous.