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52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot and 9% Cabernet Franc, this is a massive La Mission Haut Brion. A little difficult to assess in some ways but clearly dramatic The Wine Spectator was impressed:"Fantastic aromas of violets, berries and currants with hints of wood. Full-bodied, with super-refined tannins and a lovely silky finish. Very refined yet powerful and structured. It builds and builds."
52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot and 9% Cabernet Franc, this is a massive La Mission Haut Brion. A little difficult to assess in some ways but clearly dramatic The Wine Spectator was impressed:"Fantastic aromas of violets, berries and currants with hints of wood. Full-bodied, with super-refined tannins and a lovely silky finish. Very refined yet powerful and structured. It builds and builds."
The 2003 La Mission Haut-Brion shows more creme de cassis, plenty of cedar wood, melted licorice and charcoal in a medium to full-bodied wine. It is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc. Rustic tannins in the back knock down the ultimate pleasure, and the point score, ever so slightly, but there’s no doubting the complex, perfumey, noble aromatics this wine has managed to attain despite the staggering heat and drought in June, July and August. This has reached full maturity, but should hold nicely for another 7-10 years.
The 2003 La Mission Haut-Brion is a large-scaled wine offering a distinctive bouquet of scorched earth, black cherry liqueur, and hints of blackberries, blueberries, graphite, and smoke. Ripe, heady, full-bodied, soft, and revealing considerable complexity, low acidity, and a broad, expansive mouthfeel, it should drink well in 2-3 years and last for two decades. Its 13% plus alcohol is normal for this hot year. Drink: 2008-2026
A blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc, this 5,000 case cuvee tips the scales at a relatively lofty 13.25% alcohol. Gravelly, smoky, scorched earth, and sweet berry fruit (black currants and blueberries) characteristics as well as surprisingly delicate nuances are followed by a layered, medium to full-bodied wine with sweet fruit, low acidity, fine power, and a luscious texture (the pH is a high 3.9). Anticipated maturity: 2007-2018.
"Fantastic aromas of violets, berries and currants with hints of wood. Full-bodied, with super-refined tannins and a lovely silky finish. Very refined yet powerful and structured. It builds and builds." (WS 95 - 100)
Very deep ruby, marvellously concentrated fragrance, slightly earthy and spicy, with great depth, very tightly knit, superb vineyard expression with deep, controlled tannins. Drink: 2012-2030.
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.
