A beautiful Haut-Brion that combines generosity and elegance. It`s rich, and velvety, with a vibrant ruby rim, all conveying structure and a sense of power. The flavour floods in through the mid-palate, displaying wonderfully vibrant blackberry, blueberry, slate, touches of blond tobacco, freshly cut herbs and exotic spicing. You can feel in the texture that it`s a warm year, not holding back. It`s powerful but elegant and unforced at the same time, with some brambled edges that give a welcome sense of acidity and a touch of bitterness. Harvested 6 September to 2 October, yielding 44hl/ha. 3.8pH. IPT72 - the same level as 2015, but it was a little higher in 2010 and 2009. 98 points

49.4% Merlot, 11.9% Cabernet Franc, 38.7% Cabernet Sauvignon. Harvested between 6 September and 2 October. Cabernet Franc picked a bit later than usual after their colleagues at Quintus, who have lots of Franc, told them to wait! Deepest black-cherry colour. Much more subdued on the nose than La Mission but has intense purity. Finely textured and yet dense, the freshness lifting it off the ground even with all the underlying power. Deep-rooted purity and wonderful persistence, all tied up and just with that slight rocky character that finishes dry but not drying. Impressive elegance in a powerful vintage. Firm, dry and yet so much more supple than many wines. Very slightly toasty on the finish but the oak is swallowed by the fruit. 18 points

The 2018 Haut-Brion is a blend of 49.4% Merlot, 38.7% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11.9% Cabernet Franc, harvested September 6 to October 2. Deep purple-black in color, it is much more closed than the La Mission. It holds back for the first few minutes, reticent to reveal what slowly uncoils to give wave after wave of exotic spices—cardamom, cassis, star anise and fenugreek—over an opulent core of red roses, Black Forest cake, warm cassis and black raspberries with nuances of cigar box, crushed rocks, t ruffles, tilled black soil, iron ore and smoked meats. The full-bodied palate is truly profound, with restrained black fruit and spice layers slowly offering mineral sparks and savory suggestions within a rock-solid frame of firm, super fine-grained tannins and beautiful freshness, finishing with epic length and depth. This will take longer to come around than the La Mission, but it will be well worth the wait. 97-99+ points

This is a blend of 49.4% Merlot, 38.7% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11.9% Cabernet Franc, picked between September 6th and October 2nd. It is dark and rather reductive on the nose, a feature which provides a matchsticky frame to the notes of praline, toast, black olive and acacia. The palate is fresh, pure and textural, showing elegance and yet it has a brooding substance and a huge breadth of grippy and tannic structure. These tannins feel polished and ripe, tightly grained and well knit together. Over the top there lies a delicately poised, medium-bodied substance, with peppered black plum and black olive. This is charming, with a fresh cut of acids, little praline and toast twists through the middle, and a long and grippy finish. A very fine Haut-Brion in the making. Well done. 95-97 points

The 2018 Haut-Brion is a regal wine. Creamy, soft and inviting, the 2018 is one of the more open-knit young Haut-Brions I can remember tasting. Cedar, tobacco, smoke, licorice, grilled herbs, leather and menthol are nicely layered in the glass. In 2018, Haut-Brion is almost shockingly elegant at this very early stage. There is plenty of tannin, but it is totally woven into the wine`s fabric. In 2018, the blend is 49.4% Merlot, 38.7% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11.9% Cabernet Franc. 93-96 points