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Wine Description
The Story
There are few places where terroir truly affects production but Château Haut-Bailly is definitely one of those. Château Haut-Bailly has a distinctive style that harmoniously combines classicism with modernity, elegance, finesse and softness with structure. The silky smoothness of the tannins echoes the elegant yet complex aromas.
Château Haut-Bailly has great ageing potential and consistently wins praise from experts who agree that it offers complex pleasure and a richness that is neither aggressive nor ostentatious. These are natural qualities which Haut-Bailly is determined to keep.
Each year the team at Château Haut-Bailly works hard at developing the quality of the wines without interfering with nature. Since 1998, thanks to even more stringent selection controls, the wine has gained a greater depth and precision.
Wine Information
1999 has been a early vintage with mid-flowering on May 31, four days ahead of the ten-year average. In spite of adverse weather conditions in early June, flowering took place rapidly and uniformly so that mid-veraison, when the grapes change colour, was declared on August 4, the same as 1989.
1999 was warmer and somewhat wetter than normal, marked once again by inclement conditions during picking... Since maturity seemed to be coming on much faster than expected, with high sugar content and low acidity, we decided to make a very early trial run –on September 10 and 16 – from a parcel planted to young Merlot grafted on Riparia Gloire.
Picking only began in earnest on September 22, completed by October 5 but we seemed to be constantly juggling with the unpredictable weather and the risks of rot setting in. However, as it happened the grapes turned out to be in an excellent sanitary state thanks to the special care taken over the way the vines were looked after right through the summer: thinning the grapes considerably and de-leafing both sides towards end August...
A wine virtually « custom-built », but nevertheless stamped with a brand of classicism, a very Haut- Bailly vintage!