Chateau Haut Bailly 2021

JAMES SUCKLING: "The winemaker calls this wine chic, and it is, with enticing aromas of blackcurrants, chocolate, walnuts, nutmeg, bark and forest floor. Some graphite and dark mushrooms. Medium-bodied with very integrated tannins that melt into the wine, with super length and finesse at the end. It’s the subtle texture and pure and complex fruit character that impress. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 22% merlot, 10% petit verdot and 3% cabernet franc. Drinkable now, but this will age beautifully."

WEINWISSER: "Der ausgezeichnete Haut-Bailly 2021 konnte seine Bewertung nach der Abfüllung bei drei Proben mit der gleichen Bewertung bestätigen! Dunkle, satte Nase mit viel Frucht und ausgezeichneter Tiefenstaffelung. Im Mund verfügt er über eine weite, groß gefasste Struktur, ewig lang und differenziert. Ein großer Haut- Bailly mit enormer Rasse und Balance. Seine sehr hohe Konzentration kommt dann erst im langen Nachhall vollends zum Vorschein, davor wirkt er von mittlerer Fülle ausgestattet. Dieses grandiose Finale strahlt ewig lang und intensiv in den Rachen hinab. Wow, welch großer Pessac-Léognan mit dezenten 13.0 Vol.-% Alkohol."

DECANTER: "Seductive blackcurrant and juniper with purple floral touches on the nose. Smooth texture with high acidity giving sharp strawberry fruit balanced by both savoury and mineral touches - slate, crushed stone, smoke, violets and dark chocolate - very much in the style of the vintage with no harshness or overt opulence but instead gives a pure sense of classicism, restraint and refinement. Elegant and well structured with a long determined finish - this will continue to deliver pleasure for a long time. 10% press wine. No chaptalisation. 30% grand vin. 3.9pH. 3% Cabernet Franc completes the blend. Yield 19hl/ha. First year in the new cellar."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Dark garnet in color, the wine is equally dark aromatically with its nuances of smoky black cherries, blackberries, cocoa, cigar box, flowers and black plums. On the palate, the wine is focused on its chewy, black cherries, chalk, spicy black raspberries, cocoa and spice. Texturally, the wine offers an exotic, sensuous, elegant quality that I really like. It separates Haut Bailly from all the other wines I tasted. The wine is probably always going to be a bit reticent in character, so, allow it a few years in the cellar, and some time in the decanter as well. The wine blends 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot ,and 3% Cabernet Franc, representing the highest percentage of Petit Verdot in the history of the estate. 2021 is the first vintage produced in their new, state-of-the-art cellars. Drink from 2026-2055."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The 2021 Haut-Bailly, a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc, reveals a complex, brooding bouquet with aromas of blackcurrant, spices, plums, spring flowers and smoke. Medium to full-bodied, it’s a lively, rather muscular wine with a fleshy, dense core of fruit, tangy acids and powdery tannins. Despite its firm character, I like its overall balance. It should age gracefully over the next 10 years."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, tiefer Kern, violette Reflexe, dezente Randaufhellung. Schwarze Kirschen und Cassis, feine Würze, zartes Nougat, kandierte Orangenzesten. Saftig, reife Kirschen, ein Hauch von Pflaumen, seidige, reife Tannine, salziger Touch, gute Frische, bleibt haften, ein facettenreicher Speisenbegleiter, sehr pure Stilistik, sicheres Reifepotenzial. Très chic!"

LISA PERROTTI-BROWN: "A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, and 3% Cabernet Franc, the 2021 Haut-Bailly is medium to deep garnet-purple in color. It pops from the glass with punchy scents of kirsch, redcurrant jelly, and fresh blueberries, giving way to touches of pencil shavings, cardamom, and violets. The medium-bodied palate is restrained and elegant, featuring fine-grained tannins and well-knit freshness to support the vibrant red and blue fruit layers, finishing long and perfumed. Pretty!"

JEB DUNNUCK: "The 2021 Château Haut-Bailly is a beautiful, elegant wine that's very much in the style of the estate with its charming, supple, seamless profile. Red and black currants, smoke tobacco, spice, and subtle flower nuances all define this utterly classic, seamless Haut-Bailly. Coming from minuscule yields of 19 hectoliters per hectare, it will drink well for at least 20 years."