Haut-Brion vertical tasting (and a bit of La Mission Haut-Brion)

Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Tasted Tuesday, November 1, 2016 by DrinkBordeaux with 498 views

Introduction

A great tasting of Haut-Brion, from 1937 to 1989. Also included were the 1989 Haut-Brion blanc and La Mission Haut-Brion. Tasting held at 1800 E. Las Olas Blvd.

Flight 1 (9 Notes)

  • 1937 Château Haut-Brion 88 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Still a very dark color with amber brown edges. Nose if still charming, but really showing its age, with prune, raisin, tomato, black licorice, and forest floor. Over time, took on a bit of green bean aroma as well. Lacking a bit of body, but had a smooth mouthfeel. A bit maderized. Tannins resolved. A bit vinegary and acidic on the finish. Impressive that a wine from 1937 could be so drinkable but we probably just got lucky with this bottle.

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  • 1949 Château Haut-Brion 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Has seen better days, but still with some life left. A fragrant nose with lots of dark fruits, raisin, mushroom, truffle, earth, and leather. Good concentration and with an elegant mouthfeel. Still had a pretty solid tannic structure. Acidity started out in good balance, but elevated after two hours.

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  • 1966 Château Haut-Brion 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    A light/medium ruby color, the lightest of all of the wines in this vertical tasting. A beautiful floral nose. Black currant, bacon, truffle, graphite, cigar tobacco, eucalyptus, and earth. Really enjoyed the elegant mouthfeel, but a bit weak in the mid-palate. Light on its feet. Tannins well-integrated. Lost a bit of steam throughout the evening, but it started out as one of the strongest wines tonight. A memorable finish with nice acidity.

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  • 1970 Château Haut-Brion 96 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Easily the surprise of the night. In fact, many in attendance picked this as their WOTN (over the 89!!). This was one of the those wines that showed incredibly well early in the evening, but clearly didn't have the momentum or evolving complexity of the 89 HB or LMHB. Still, this wine was outstanding on this evening, and much better than the last bottle I drank a year ago. Lots of pure fruit, with cassis, tobacco, smoke, flowers, and truffle. Good concentration. Really nice balance on the palate, and appeared seamless with nothing standing out. Tannins fully integrated. A long finish, with fresh acidity. At the end of the night, it had mellowed out a bit and had perhaps lost a bit of its shine.

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  • 1985 Château Haut-Brion 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    On its own, this would have been a standout wine; but on this evening, it was just out-classed by the 1989. It did continue to open up nicely throughout the evening. A medium ruby color, with some lightening at the edges. A very fragrant nose of sweet cassis, lots of smoke, cedar, cigar, truffle, and anise. Quite linear and focused on the palate. A long, lingering finish with silky tannins and a good level of acidity. I would bet that this wine will only get better in the upcoming years.

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  • 1989 Château Haut-Brion 98 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Lived up to its pedigree. Started out appearing very young, and took some time to open up. Yet it didn't fully show itself on this evening. By the time the evening ended, this was starting to reach a mind-blowing stage. The color of a much younger wine. A very exotic nose of sweet cassis, tobacco, violets, cedar, and barbecue smoke. Outstanding balance; everything appeared to be in sync. Though there is a dense tannic structure, the tannins were soft, round, and unobtrusive. Dense and layered on the palate. A very long finish. Excellent freshness. Hard to find much fault, other than its initial shyness (leading it to be underrated by other attendees at the tasting).

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  • 1989 Château Haut-Brion Blanc 96 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Light/medium golden yellow color. Lots of citrus, tropical fruit, honey, and white flowers on the nose. A beautiful subtle sweetness. Elegant. Seamless finish with a nice acidic bite.

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  • 1989 Château La Mission Haut-Brion 97 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Quite different from the 89 Haut-Brion, and took a lot more time to open up. A brooding nose of black currant, sous bois, leather, smoke, anise, and Asian spices. A gorgeous mouthfeel, but still fairly tannic. Tannins softened up after two hours. Took even more time to open up than the 89 Haut-Brion. Did start out with a bit of heat on the finish but this blew off very quickly. This gained considerable weight in the glass, and I think we only got a small taste (literally) of what this will become.

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  • 1999 Château d'Yquem 95 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    Deep golden color. Orange marmalade, tropical fruit, honey, and caramel. A nice medium weight d'Yquem. Great balance of sweetness and acidity. Lovely.

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