x
  • Country ranking ?

    406
  • Producer ranking ?

    29
  • Decanting time

    2h
  • When to drink

    from 2020
  • Food Pairing

    Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Lemon Beurre Blanc

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

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The 2015 Haut Brion Blanc is a blend of 69% Sauvignon Blanc and 31% Semillon that was picked between 28 August and 7 September. Like the 2015 La Mission Haut Brion Blanc, the bouquet was quite backward despite rigorous aeration, reluctantly proffering aromas of lime, citrus lemon, gooseberry and a touch of tinned peach. The palate is very well balanced with a fine line of acidity, perhaps even more tensile and precise than the 2015 La Mission Haut-Brion with greengage, citrus lemon and a touch of pineapple furnishing the long finish. This is a beautifully crafted Haut Brion Blanc that will reward those with the nous to cellar it for 10-15 years.

Score: 94/96

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate (224), April 2016

Dense and very powerful with reserve and seamless phenolic. Full body, sliced apple and lemon rind. So long and flavorful. A beautiful and balanced wine. Undertones of oyster shell and stone. Excellent as always.

Score: 96/97

James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, March 2016

The 2015 Haut-Brion Blanc brings together freshness with power like few wines in this vintage. Lemon confit, white flowers, mint and ripe orchard fruit all open up in the glass. In this vintage, the white is Sauvignon Blanc dominated, but it doesn’t taste like it at all. Beams of salinity give the 2015 its focus and energy through the finish. This is a stellar showing.

Score: 94/97

Antonio Galloni, vinous.com, April 2016

The nose has depth sweet fruit the palate an opulence depth of flavour with tropical fruits backed by yellow peach. There is balance the mid sweetness underpinned by citrus freshness layers of flavour complexity. Fleshy and sweet at the back the finish is lighter and fresher there is the feel of power yet elegance.

Score: 93/96

Derek Smedley MW, DerekSmedleyMW.co.uk, April 2016

Among the best white wines of the vintage, as it always is, this white Haut-Brion is as brilliant as it is rare. Broad, leesy and concentrated, this shows some of the heat of the vintage, but is balanced by acidity, structure and freshness. Candle wax, toast and pink grapefruit. Drink: 2017-30

Score: 95

Tim Atkin MW, timatkin.com, April 2016

Dense and lively. Turbo-charged Sauvignon! Some real elegance and lift - honey and the race of Sauvignon. Expressive. Drink 2022-2032

Score: 18

Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2016

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The Story

Haut-Brion Blanc is as renowned as it is scarce, with only about 8,000 bottles available per vintage for a very demanding market. It is often regarded as the greatest white of Bordeaux, although Haut-Brion Blanc’s sibling, Laville Haut-Brion, sometimes equals and occasionally surpasses it. The white vineyards at Haut-Brion are planted to 63 percent Sémillon and 37 percent Sauvignon Blanc, a weighting that gives this wine its particularly plush combination of Sémillon-driven body and Sauvignon-influenced scent of musk. Haut-Brion Blanc ages beautifully. 

 

White Bordeaux does not come much more layered and powerful than this. Strong oak roasted nut notes are evident on the nose but dissipate quickly on the palate. Taut yet shapely refreshing but rich. A large framed wine that manages to find harmony. Alongside exotic touches of stone fruit there are some wonderfully energising fruit characteristics of crystallised lemon rind, grapefruit and lime. Long, complex and very intense without being too weighty.

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Wine Information

The year 2015 appears to be the warmest and sunniest, throughout our country, since the beginning of meteorological statistics. A long heat wave and dry period allowed to achieve excellent flowering conditions until the arrival, in August, of miraculous rains. This rain enabled the vines to maintain the necessary water reserves and to provide requisite nourishment for perfect ripeness. The harvest began in September under a clear blue sky. Thanks to this ideal weather, we were able to wait for optimum ripeness for each grape variety. All the conditions are there to allow 2015 to join the greatest vintages of Bordeaux.

 

Excitement about the potential of the 2015 Bordeaux vintage – and wine made in several other parts of France last autumn – has been rising for months. In Bordeaux,  but also in Burgundy,  Champagne and the Rhône, conditions were close to  ideal last summer.

Hours of sunshine and average temperatures were the highest since records began – even higher than in “mythical” wine-growing years such as 1921 and 1947. “We think we have something very special but we are holding our tongues until the tasting begins,” said a family member at one of the most sought-after châteaux in the Médoc growing region. 

Denis Dubourdieu, professor of wine at the University of Bordeaux and one of the most successful Bordeaux winemakers, told The Independent: “I don’t think there can be any doubt. This will be an exceptional year, in line with memorable years like 2009 and 2005.

“Everything about the growing season last year was perfect. And from what I’ve seen at the wine-making stage and in the barrel later on,  this is going to be a wonderful vintage.” Mr Dubourdieu says that  producing wine is like a horse-race with five meteorological “fences”. In 2015, he says, Bordeaux jumped all the hurdles with ease.

The vines flowered early in warm sunshine; the tiny grapes appeared in perfect dry weather; they turned purple in ideal conditions of slight drought in mid-July; they expanded and ripened in a warm, dry August with just a little rain; and they were picked in a dry autumn with cool nights. This is like getting all the numbers right in the lottery. 

There were excellent claret vintages in 2000, 2005, 2009 and 2010 and a reasonable year in 2012. In the past two years, to the annoyance of many people in the industry, Bordeaux has been criticised or faintly praised. There have also been complaints about the fact that the top châteaux kept their prices high, despite the apparent dip in quality. 

 

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Vintage 2015

Full report of Bordeaux 2015 by Andrew Caillard MW “Next in line in a great series of vintages; 2000, 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2015.

 

2015 is a wonderful Bordeaux vintage without the hype or hysteria associated with 2009 and 2010. The wines are generally expressive and generous with wonderful concentration and structure. Given another year in barrel, the wines should gain more complexity and fruit volume. Châteaux, in all sub-regions, are enthusiastic about the beautiful fragrance, clear fruit aromas and lively energy of the wines, and believe the vintage to be the best since 2010. More than once, the expression “a vintage of the decade” was mentioned. I have tasted through most of the top wines, some on more than one occasion, and I am convinced that this is a vintage worth supporting. It’s a very successful vintage.

 

The weather conditions were generally ideal with perfect flowering and set for spring. A hot, dry, sunny period in June and July kept the vines in balance; Near-drought conditions resulted in excellent cluster development. Veraison (in which the grape berries change from green and hard to colored and fleshy) began towards the end of July. Light rains refreshed the canopies and hydrated the grape clusters. Cooler weather arrived in August with above average precipitation. Northern Médoc was exposed to heavy rains, but no berry splitting or significant disease pressure was reported. The cooler conditions leading up to harvest in September allowed the grapes to retain their aromatic potential and ripen relatively evenly.

 

Red wines from the Right Bank and the Left Bank are generally impressive in their concentration, vigor and freshness. Although all wines are tasted extremely young, it is easy to see the quality and dimension of the vintage. Merlot performed particularly well, with many Châteaux picking intermittently over a three-week window to achieve optimal freshness, flesh and maturity. Cabernet Franc, its companion in many wines, gives an attractive “tannin seam” and structural vigor. Observers are already calling it a right bank year (St Emilion & Pomerol). Ch Vieux Château Certan, described as “La Force Tranquille”, and Château Petrus were my two top Right Bank wines, followed by Château Ausone. All have a buoyancy and precision that bodes well for the future.

 

The southern left bank (Margaux and Pessac-Léognan) also found some beautiful concentrated wines. The alcoholic strength and tannic maturity seem to correlate with this impression. Cabernet Sauvignon, typically “needing to take its time”, produced wines of beautiful aromaticity, concentration and vitality. The success of this variety depended on the sophistication of harvesting and selection during blending. Château Margaux and Château Palmer are amazing wines. Château Haut Brion and Château La Mission Haut Brion made dense chocolate styles. Château Haut Bailly is particularly refined and nicely balanced.

 

At Château Batailley, the introduction of a second wine and greater attention to differentiation led to one of the best vintages in its history. Many small refinements and decisions in the vineyard and cellar have allowed several large châteaux in St Julien, Pauillac and St Estephe to make beautiful wines too. The difficult selection process is particularly evident on the Left Bank. Château Margaux and Château Cos d’Estournel have chosen to rigorously defend their first wines through very careful picking and selection. Only 35% and 39% (respectively) of the harvest were dedicated to their Grand Vin. Ch Cheval Blanc de St Emilion represented 95.1% of the harvest, leaving no reason to make Petit Cheval in 2015.

The attention to detail in the vineyard, especially after the August rains, and the huge investments in optical sorting machines (costing around 200,000 euros each) at harvest ensured that the grapes were in good condition before vinification. It’s quite incredible how the fruit arrives in the cellar these days. Attention to detail has become the norm within the Grand Cru Classé community. The First Growth Estates with their huge financial investments in vineyard practices and cellars, have all produced impressive wines this year. Perhaps the most evocative of all is Château Margaux. The death of the estate's longtime winemaker, Paul Pontallier, on Easter Sunday from cancer shook the Bordeaux wine community. He was a man for all seasons. He brought out the best in his people and their wines, whatever the vintage offered. 2015 Château Margaux, in all likelihood, will be the greatest vintage in its modern history.

 

Despite the somber mood of this year’s En Primeurs 2015 tastings, the energy of spring brought a feeling of renewal. Buds in the vines, white and pink flowers in full bloom, pure chirping of baby birds and vibrant new wines of the vintage promised the animation and maturation of life. The colors, densities, flavors and tannic quality of the young red wines suggest a great vintage in the making. It is one of the most curious practices in the wine trade to comment on unfinished wine, but somehow the predictions become more or less right. Over the next year, the wines will develop more complexity, richness and volume in fruit barrels. The tannins, oak and fruit will integrate more.

 

The sweet aperitif/dessert wines of Sauternes and Barsac also performed very well. The combination of uniform maturation and optimal outbreaks of botrytis cinerea produced magnificent wines. Some are calling it the best vintage since 2001, arguably the greatest vintage in recent memory. While Ch d’Yquem looked stunning, the elegant Ch Climens style, still in many parts, will look wonderful. Typically, this wine is tasted from multiple barrels, and my notes are a composite of eight different elements. The scent, dynamism, freshness and line are incredible. Dry whites, primarily Sauvignon Blanc or Gris dominant, are refreshing styles with an appealing freshness and vibrancy. Ch Haut Brion Blanc is an amazing wine, but its release price will reflect its rarity.

 

Châteaux will likely bring out the vintage in two installments to capture the appetite of the global wine trade. Early bids will likely be a bit higher than last year's opening prices. This will go against the advice of traders who have been operating with very low margins for many years. The weakening of the pound sterling and the Australian dollar against the euro may be a stumbling block for some buyers, but there will be value and opportunity in this upcoming open season. For Australian buyers, this is absolutely the best way to buy Bordeaux. Provenance is guaranteed, allocations confirmed and the price will always be lower than future imports, due to the structure of the Bordeaux market.

Better market conditions in China and the United States, combined with a significant vintage both in quantity and quality, will allow Bordeaux to regain momentum after a four-year period of stagnation and uncertainty. The game of cat and mouse between the Châteaux, the merchants and the wine trade begins now. Whatever the outcome, Bordeaux will continue to be the benchmark for great wines for many decades to come. There is something completely unique, invigorating and evocative about mature Bordeaux wines. The best of 2015 will be transformative and delicious to drink. All you need is patience, moderately deep pockets, and the willingness to buy!

 

Margaux/ Beautiful wines with magnificent fruit density and fine, sinuous tannins. It’s been a few years since Margaux shone so brightly. Ch Margaux, Ch Palmer, Ch Rauzan Segla, Ch Rauzan Gassies, Alter Ego de Cg Palmer. Ch Pavillon Rouge, Ch Malescot de St Exupery, Ch D’Angludet, Ch Kirwan, Ch Cantenac Brown and Ch Brand Cantenac are highlights.

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Tasting note

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Written Notes

The 2015 Haut Brion Blanc is a blend of 69% Sauvignon Blanc and 31% Semillon that was picked between 28 August and 7 September. Like the 2015 La Mission Haut Brion Blanc, the bouquet was quite backward despite rigorous aeration, reluctantly proffering aromas of lime, citrus lemon, gooseberry and a touch of tinned peach. The palate is very well balanced with a fine line of acidity, perhaps even more tensile and precise than the 2015 La Mission Haut-Brion with greengage, citrus lemon and a touch of pineapple furnishing the long finish. This is a beautifully crafted Haut Brion Blanc that will reward those with the nous to cellar it for 10-15 years.

  • 96p
Tasted in April 2016. showed as splendidly as 2015 LMHB and the only thing which put HB in the front of LMHB, was more intensity, more depth and longer finish.
  • 96p
Bright yellow with green hue. Elegant but persistent nose with pure fruit, fresh grapefruit and tangerine, hints of lime-zest. In the background tropical fruit, passionfruit and mango, hints of vanilla and slightly mineral character. On the palate rich fruit in combination with freshness and elegant acidity, excellent length. A great wine with class, Sauvignon-Blanc driven, with very complex character.
  • 98p
Pale colour. Intense lemon curd, white flowers, grapefruit aromas with vanilla nuances. Beautiful roundness and density. Lemon curd, grapefruit flavours, fresh long mineral acidity. Pure lemony finish with aniseed notes. Very attractive wine with plenty of potential. Alcohol quite high at 15.3%. 95 points.
  • 95p
Pale lemon yellow. Apples, pears, peach, ripe gooseberries and a touch of citrus nose. Fresh acidity, fresh, fruity, ripe, intense, elegant structure and body, detailed, layered, long. 94-96
  • 95p
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Information

Origin

Pessac-Leognan, Bordeaux

Vintage Quality

Excellent

Value For Money

Best buy

Investment potential

Good

Fake factory

None

Other wines from this producer

Château Haut-Brion

La Clarté de Haut-Brion

Le Clarence de Haut-Brion

Plantiers de Haut-Brion

Inside Information

The 2015 vintage: Following in the footsteps of the greatest vintages

Spring 2015 (April, May, and June) was very dry. This was conducive to excellent flowering conditions, both quick and even. July was also a dry month. The effects of water stress were obvious in plots with the youngest vines.  Fortunately, it finally rained on July 26th (14 mm), which gave a new impetus to the young Merlot vines and enabled véraison, or colour change, to take place unhindered.

The level of precipitation from March to June was much lower than the average of the last sixty-years.  These drought conditions slowed down vegetative growth starting in July.  This allowed the vine's vigour to be channelled into ripening the fruit.  Another consequence of the cumulative dry, hot summer weather was very thick skins.

 

This led us to look after the vines with the greatest of care, giving tailor-made attention to each one. Leaf and bunch thinning were thus carried out to varying degrees and at different times.  These two operations occurred early in the season and were intense for Merlot and Cabernet Franc, but took place later and were less intense for Cabernet Sauvignon and the white wine varieties. Going through the vines repeatedly to pluck leaves and thin bunches improved ventilation and enhanced ripening.

August was hot as well as rainy – which everyone in Bordeaux had been hoping for. This rain enabled the vines to maintain the necessary water reserves and to provide requisite nourishment for perfect ripeness. The harvest began in September under a clear blue sky. Thanks to this ideal weather, we were able to wait for optimum ripeness for each grape variety.

All the conditions are there to allow 2015 to join the greatest vintages of Haut-Brion and  Mission Haut-Brion.

 

Red wines

Le Clarence de Haut-Brion 
The colour is very deep with attractive red highlights. The first impression on the nose is of ripe fruit. Swirling in the glass shows the bouquet's intensity and complexity.  2015 Clarence is tasty and full-bodied from the very first, going on to show refined, tight-knit tannin. The wine leaves an impression of freshness and plenty of volume, but without heaviness.

57% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon – The harvest lasted from the 8th of September to the 5th of October.

 

Château Haut-Brion
Very beautiful, deep, garnet-red colour.   The nose is ripe and concentrated.  After swirling in the glass, it becomes more complex with hints of very ripe – but not excessively so – red and black fruit. There are also liquorice nuances and a soupçon of clove. The wine starts out with a very soft mouth feel and immediately shows tremendous volume and depth in every respect, with flavours reminiscent of ripe fruit and cocoa beans.  The long aftertaste features mocha and slightly bitter coffee nuances. Barrel ageing will undoubtedly bring out more of this wine's greatness and confirm its place among the finest vintages of Château Haut-Brion.

50% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon – The harvest lasted from the 8th of September to the 5th of October.

 

White wines

La Clarté de Haut-Brion
2015 La Clarté has a very attractive, expressive nose of citrus, especially grapefruit, with lemon nuances. The wine starts out very rich and attractive on the palate with medium volume, as well as plenty of depth and attractive flavours.

27% Sauvignon Blanc, 73% Sémillon – The harvest lasted from the 28th of August to the 8th of September.

 

Château Haut-Brion 
White Château Haut-Brion has a complex nose revealing hints of mango, lychee, pineapple, rose petal, and pepper. The Sauvignon Blanc comes through beautifully here.  The wine is full and fruity on the palate, going on to show breadth, richness, and a superb, saline mouth-watering aftertaste.

69% Sauvignon Blanc, 31% Sémillon – The harvest lasted from the 28th of August to the 7th of September.

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