Haut Brion v La Mission

The Ledbury, London
Tasted Friday, September 3, 2010 by Rupert with 824 views

Introduction

Two tables of six sat down at the Ledbury to compare HB and LMHB in the top vintages of the 80s. I was struck by how similar the two were - pretty much all showed deep, ripe, cedary fruit with a charred edge. Tonight I saw less of the smoke and tobacco that people talk about and which I've found very noticeable in the past. Not much variation from vintage to vintage either - I think I marginally preferred the 85s, but really there was little to choose between them and the 82s and the 89HB/90LMHB. A fantastically consistent group of wines.

Flight 1 - with scallop, confit of squid and a shellfish consomme (3 Notes)

  • 1983 Château Laville Haut-Brion Blanc

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Pale gold, mouthwatering nose, noticeably sauvignon I thought with a touch of wax and petrol. Lean, intense, intriguing

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  • 1982 Château Laville Haut-Brion Blanc

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Similar pale gold to the 83, this was more shy on the nose, but deeper, riper and more powerful on the palate, a similar flavour profile with its wax, lemon and petrol, but a bit more all round - super

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  • 1978 Château Laville Haut-Brion Blanc

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Paler, leaner, sharper than the 82 and 83, an acrid edge, amazingly fresh, high acid, bracing and exciting, but a touch behind the other two I felt

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Flight 2 - with crisp pressed suckling pig with white carrot, blood pudding and rosemary (3 Notes)

  • 1990 Château La Mission Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    An amazing mouthful of rich spicy cedar, glossy, flamboyant, but no lack of depth and complexity - a spectacular start to the reds

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  • 1983 Château La Mission Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Dark, savoury and spicy, overshadowed by the 1990, but this is a lovely wine in its own right - on the two previous occasions I've had this I've given it a very high mark (94). I don't think this bottle was inferior, it was just in grander company

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  • 1978 Château La Mission Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Marked by the characteristic 1978 stalkiness, which on this occasion lifted the wine and made it stand out from the others - silky black fruit and the first appearance tonight of the tobacco quality that usually marks out LMHB and HB

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Flight 3 - with breast of grouse with a prune cooked in smoked tea, crisp potato and walnuts (4 Notes)

  • 1985 Château Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Very similar to the LMHB, a bit less glossy, but ripe, spicy, cedary, soft and showing perfect balance [there was a different bottle on the other table which I didn't get to try]

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  • 1982 Château Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    First of two bottles - very pleasant, balanced mature claret, but seemed so small after the 85s

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  • 1985 Château La Mission Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Yet again the main impression was of spice, cedar, really deep and with a glossy texture, very lovely

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  • 1982 Château La Mission Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Not big, but lovely refinement and balance, a beautiful smooth harmonious wine

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Flight 4 - with loin and shoulder of lamb with shallot puree, niora pepper and dried tomatoes (4 Notes)

  • 1989 Château Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Our table's bottle: smooth and round, deep roasted fruit, lots of tannin in the background, still not fully expressive, but the depth is apparent - clearly a special wine but right now I get more from the 85

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  • 1989 Château Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    The other table's bottle: rather different from ours, more evolved, less smooth, more brothy with a touch of brett, overall a bit less refined, but more accessible today and I found it the more exciting

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  • 1986 Château Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Surprisingly ripe and round, a bit oxidative in fact, plummy fruit, and then the grippy tannins come through - doubtless this would have been lovely on its own, but the weakest wine tonight

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  • 1982 Château Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Second bottle: way better than the first, like comparing two photographs one of which was out of focus - this was vibrant, cedary, rich, lots of layers, beautiful

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Flight 5 - with green apple puree with sauternes jelly, olive oil panacotta and crystallised ginger ice cream (2 Notes)

  • 1989 Château d'Yquem

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    Thick, a bit heavy and oxidative at first, but my last mouthful was gorgeously exotic and complex and I wish I'd paid it more attention

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  • 1988 Château Climens

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

    Fresher than the Yquem, lean, bright and mineral, mature, lifted by a touch of volatility - a fine finale

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