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In contrast to the Domaine de Chevalier, which feels supple and open and almost ready to drink, this Haut Bailly is still a tightly wound fist. Dark fruit and smoky oak aromas are followed by a densely tannic, savoury structure. The tannic content is extremely fine, but still dominates the palate, suggesting it needs at least another 5 years in the cellar before its starts to unfurl. The quality of integration between acidity and fruit, weight and length, is utterly brilliant, and when this wine is ready to drink, it will be a beauty.
In contrast to the Domaine de Chevalier, which feels supple and open and almost ready to drink, this Haut Bailly is still a tightly wound fist. Dark fruit and smoky oak aromas are followed by a densely tannic, savoury structure. The tannic content is extremely fine, but still dominates the palate, suggesting it needs at least another 5 years in the cellar before its starts to unfurl. The quality of integration between acidity and fruit, weight and length, is utterly brilliant, and when this wine is ready to drink, it will be a beauty.
An excellent 2005 that has all of marks of the vintage - plump and pretty with velvety tannins and superb ripeness. Drink 2012 - 2025+.
The 2005 Haut Bailly is rapidly turning into a glorious wine. You instantly fall in love with the purity on the nose, luscious red cherries, wild strawberry and blueberry. This is still youthful and beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with quite a structured opening like many in this vintage. It exerts a gentle grip in the mouth, quite tensile and linear and perhaps just tightening up a tad toward the finish. It is biding its time, but it will repay those who cellar this outstanding 2005 for another four or five years. Tasted March 2017. Drink 2022-2050. 95/100
The 2005 Haut-Bailly, is dense purple with loads of graphite, earth, spice, blackberry and blueberry fruit, beautiful balance, medium to full body, and stunning purity, texture and length. Still incredibly young at age 10, this wine is set for 30 or more years of longevity. This is a great, great Haut-Bailly that will one day probably rival 2009 and 2010.
Haut-Bailly's American proprietor, Robert Wilmers, backed up by the brilliant Veronique Sanders,continues to go from strength to strength. A fabulous example of this estate, the 2005 is an ethereal, delicate, finesse-styled offering with intensity as well as richness. It has all the concentration one could want, but it comes across as gorgeously elegant and sublime because of its combination of delicacy, power, and depth. Beautiful raspberry, black cherry, currant, graphite, and scorched earth notes are subtle, but provocative. In the mouth, there is good acidity, medium body, ripe tannin, and terrific length. This is a beauty of haute couture from Pessac-Leognan. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2035.
Kudos to Veronique Sanders, the former proprietor's granddaughter, and the new American ownershipled by Robert Wilmers, for fashioning the finest Haut-Bailly in nearly half a century. While this will never be one of the densest clarets, the 2005 possesses exceptional concentration along with beautiful smoky graphite, raspberry, and black cherry characteristics in its stunning aromatics, a medium-bodied, gloriously concentrated palate profile, good acidity, and sweet tannin. Gorgeous elegance and finesse along with significant concentration and intensity suggest this beauty will be at its finest between 2013-2030+.
This is the finest Haut-Bailly I have ever tasted, although I suppose the 1900 or 1928 may have possessed similar qualities at the same age. Quintessentially elegant and rich, with surreal lightness and delicacy, it displays an inky/ruby color and beautiful aromas of sweet raspberries, black currants, flowers, graphite, and minerals. Medium-bodied and stunningly concentrated with moderately high but sweet tannin, this modern day legend represents a new reference point for this estate (now American-owned). Anticipated maturity: 2012-2030.
Double decanted. Dark purplish, floral nose that seems just a tad skinny. Lots of tannins and at the moment a bit churlish. Very cool and inky. Rather drying end. Drink 2024-2044
Sappy, savoury, essence of Graves (Pessac-Léognan). Lively mouthful of fresh, not overripe, fruit that spreads seductively across the palate - not especially complex but with good sandy tannins underneath. Very supple and more-ish. Drink me, says this wine. Drink 2013-27.
Gorgeous blackberry and chocolate aromas with hints of spice. Focused and refined nose. Full-bodied, with ultrafine tannins and a long, long finish. Lovely fruit. This is up there with the 2000.
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.
