2021 - Ch Haut Bailly Grand Cru Classé Pessac-Léognan - 6x75cl

Colour Red
Producer Château Haut-Bailly
Region Pessac-Léognan
Grape Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot / Cabernet Franc
Drinking 2027 - 2049
Case size 6x75cl
Available En Primeur

Please note: These wines are lying abroad until shipping and can only be purchased In Bond. If you are an existing Private Reserves customer, the wine will be automatically transferred on arrival. Otherwise, you will be contacted on arrival in the UK to arrange delivery, In Bond storage in Private Reserves or another bonded warehouse.

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Neal Martin, April 2022, Score: 93-95

The 2021 Haut-Bailly is built around 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, the blend employing less Merlot and more Petit Verdot this year since the latter was not affected by frost. It was picked between September 27 and October 11 and matured in 50% new oak with 10% vin de presse. Allowed to open in the glass, it unfurls to reveal blackberry, briar, touches of crushed stone and cedar. The taut, fresh palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit and fine acidity. This is back to the older style of Haut-Bailly in some ways; less opulent, in keeping with the style of the vintage, and delivering good weight on the finish, even if there is not the persistent aftertaste of previous vintages. The great virtue of this Haut-Bailly is the sapidity that marks the conclusion. The kind of Pessac-Léognan that needs to be decanted then poured at the dinner table. Drink 2029 - 2055
Wine Advocate, April 2022, Score: 94-95+

A classic in the making, the 2021 Haut-Bailly wafts from the glass with aromas of dark berries and wild plums mingled with sweet spices, loamy soil, raw cocoa and violets. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and concentrated, with bright acids, ultra-refined tannins and a long, penetrating finish, it's a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, only 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. With yields of a mere 19 hectoliters per hectare, it's impressively intensely flavored despite its quintessentially elegant, classically proportioned profile. In many respects, it may represent the Cabernet-driven modern-day alter ego of the superb Merlot-dominant 1998 Haut-Bailly.
Antonio Galloni, April 2022, Score: 94-96

The 2021 Haut-Bailly is a dark, rather somber wine. The aromatics alone are captivating, but there are strong savory inflections from the high percentage of Petit Verdot in this year's blend. This deceptively mid-weight Haut-Bailly has plenty to offer. Spice, leather, tobacco and incense linger. The final blend also includes 10% press wine. Drink 2031-2061
Goedhuis, April 2022, Score: 95-97

It was a total joy to taste this stunning wine in Haut Bailly’s new Daniel Romeo designed winery. Winemaker Gabriel Vialard was elated as he explained the benefits of the new vat room, its cone shaped tanks and the attention to detail that they were able to take at harvest time as a result. Aromatically striking, with layers of mocha, plums, loganberry and mixed spice. This is a wine of glorious refinement, with an almost perfect integration of fruit, alcohol, tannins and herbal freshness. The fine layered fruit flavours benefit from the gravelly tannic core. This wine flows across the palate and thankfully the flavours persist for an extraordinarily long time. Superb.
Wine Cellar Insider, April 2022, Score: 94-96

Initially you notice the blackberries, black plums and black currants before moving on to the tobacco, flowers, spice and smoke in the aromatic profile. Supple, refined and elegant, perhaps the best way to describe the wine is modern chic, or modern classic, if you prefer. The tannins are soft and polished, the fruit is pure, clean and fresh, with a salty, mildly-chalky, supple endnote. Although it is going to probably always be a bit reticent in character, you will be able to approach and enjoy this wine in its youth, as well as age it for more complexity. The wine blends 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. The blend represents the the highest percentage of Petit Verdot in the history of the estate. 13% ABV, pH 3.9. The harvest took place September 27 to October 11. The Grand Vin was produced from 50% of the harvest. 2021 is the first vintage produced in their new, state-of-the-art cellars. Drink from 2025-2055.
Matthew Jukes, April 2022, Score: 19

There is an extra boost of Cabernet Sauvignon in 2021 Haut Bailly and Petit Verdot handled the various climatic challenges extremely well, and so these two grapes form the tremendous base of this wine. Sensual Merlot dresses the core of fruit, and Cabernet Franc adds an irresistible fragrance to this beautiful being. This is a thrilling Haut-Bailly, and it possesses one of the longest and most evenly balanced flavours I have tasted from this property. The acid and tannin refinement is on another level, and these components extend the finish, drawing it out to profound proportions. At every step of the way, the levels of refinement set new quality and sophistication bars for this Château. While it is clear that the viti and vini teams have instinctively pulled a rabbit out of the hat this year, the new winery, with its extraordinary design and enviable technological capabilities, has enabled Véronique Sanders and her colleagues to perform at the highest level. 2021 Haut-Bailly captures more of the essence of this property than ever before. This is all one can ask from a bottle of wine, and achieving this in 2021 is nothing short of a miracle.

Producer

Château Haut-Bailly

Rich in sandstone composed of fossilised shellfish ("faluns"), Haut Bailly has one of the mostnoteworthy terroirs in Pessac Léognan. As a direct result of this ancient soil, their wines areextremely elegant and pure. Though not enormously high profile, this château is one of the mostappreciated by critics and collectors alike.

Region

Pessac-Léognan

Stretching from the rather unglamorous southern suburbs of Bordeaux, for 50 km along the left bank of the river Garonne, lies Graves. Named for its gravelly soil, a relic of Ice Age glaciers, this is the birthplace of claret, despatched from the Middle Ages onwards from the nearby quayside to England in vast quantities. It can feel as though Bordeaux is just about red wines, but some sensational white wines are produced in this area from a blend of sauvignon blanc, Semillon and, occasionally, muscadelle grapes, often fermented and aged in barrel. In particular, Domaine de Chevalier is renowned for its superbly complex whites, which continue to develop in bottle over decades. A premium appellation, Pessac-Leognan, was created in 1987 for the most prestigious terroirs within Graves. These are soils with exceptional drainage, made up of gravel terraces built up in layers over many millennia, and consequently thrive in mediocre vintages but are less likely to perform well in hotter years. These wines were appraised and graded in their own classification system in 1953 and updated in 1959, but, like the 1855 classification system, this should be regarded with caution and the wines must absolutely be assessed on their own current merits.