2018 La Mission Haut-Brion (Pessac-Leognan)

53.5% Merlot/42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon/3.6% Cabernet Franc. Harvest dates 10 September - 2 October. The greatest Graves wine after Haut-Brion? A remarkable and complex bouquet. Poised, acidic, saline, dark fruit, quite beautiful, but a wine that will also take some time to come round. (NT 12/04/19)
Origin
Pessac-Leognan, Graves, Bordeaux FRANCE
Colour
red
Wine Style
dry
Dominant Grape
Merlot
Closure Style
cork
Maturity
young
Bottle Size
75cl
Case Quantity
6
Alcohol
14.5%
Wine Score
97 points, Jane Anson, decanter.com, April 2019 17.5+ points, Julia Harding, jancisrobinson.com, April 2019
98-100 points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, robertparker.com, April 2019
90-93 points, Antonio Galloni, vinous.com, April 2019
94-96 points, Chris Kissa

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Media Reviews

Jane Anson

An extremely fine Mission, just beginning to say its piece. It`s dense, gorgeously velvety in texture and bursting with fruit and energy. On the palate you get liquorice and dark chocolate notes, showing clear generosity while easily walking the line of balance. The longer it sits in the glass, the more the minerality takes hold on the mid-palate, doling out its tiny sparks of electricity and holding your attention. The subtle smoke, freshly cut herbs and tight tannins steal up on you, planting their flag in the finish. Harvested 10 September to 2 October, giving a 44hl/ha yield. 1% Petit Verdot completes the blend. IPT 75.8. The 3.76pH is the highest since 1989. 97 points

Julia Harding

40.8% Merlot, 7.6% Cabernet Franc, 51.6% Cabernet Sauvignon. Harvested between 10 September and 2 October. Deepest crimson with very dark core. Intense, pure aromatic cassis and a hint of cassis leaf, though fully ripe. Smells very Cabernet. And the tannins are upright and structured but extremely lithe and supple. No thickness here. Agile. Just a little chewy on the finish. So seemingly approachable and full of energy. 17.5+ points

Lisa Perrotti-Brown

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is composed of 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc, harvested September 10 to October 2. Deep purple-black in color, it slowly unfurls to reveal a beguiling nose of earth and soft-spoken fruit, opening with wild blueberries, wet slate, pencil lead and fresh black cherries giving way to a serious core of blackcurrant cordial, baked plums and wild sage, and then exposing delicate wafts of rose hip tea and candied violets. Full-bodied, the palate is very tightly wound and super intense with amazing restraint and energy focused around very firm, exquisitely fine-grained tannins and seamless freshness, finishing incredibly long and fantastically multilayered. Extraordinary wine. 98-100 points

Antonio Galloni

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is bright and punchy, wi th lovely radiant fruit and a good deal of immediacy. Sweet red and purplish berry fruit, mint, tobacco, blood orange and wild flowers all grace this expressive, open-knit La Mission. It will be interesting to see what develops with élevage. Today, La Mission is decidedly expressive, and yet its typical layers of nuance are not yet especially in evidence. In 2018, La Mission is 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc. 90-93 points

Chris Kissack

This is a blend of 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc, picked between September 10th and October 2nd. It feels classically floral on the nose, with rose garden and violet scents, followed by the aromas of black plum skin and currants coming in behind. It feels beautifully textured, so complete, miles ahead of the Clarence Dillon second wines, textural and refined, with a beautifully broad presence of cherry and plum fruits, complicated by nuances of acacia, praline, toast and black bean, all wrapped around the midpalate`s floral core. This is very complete, fine and elegantly understated, with svelte tannins, rich and broad, substantial and showing a peppery energy. Balanced, charming, fresh and long in the finish, this is a very fine La Mission. 94-96 points

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