Chateau Haut-Bailly Pessac-Leognan 2016 750ml

Description

Vinous 97 points – A big, vertical wine, the 2016 Haut-Bailly explodes onto the palate with tremendous depth and intensity. Readers should be in no rush to drink the 2016, as it won’t be close to ready to drink for at least a decade, and I say that as an eternal optimist. Black cherry, smoke, tobacco, cedar, gravel and incense add to the wine’s decidedly somber personality..Antonio Galloni, January/2019

Wine Advocate 96 points – The 2016 Haut Bailly is a blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc picked between 26 September until 18 October. Coming in with 13.6% alcohol and an IPT of 81, which is quite close to 2010, this was quite closed at first and so I allowed my sample 15-20 minutes to open while discussing the vintage with Veronique Sanders and technical manager, Gabriel Vialard. It has a classic bouquet that is certainly less opulent and extravagant than recent vintages. This is more controlled and focused, beautifully delineated with blackberry, cedar and Earl Grey aromas that gently waft from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine-grain tannin, sappy with superb delineation and real weight and presence in the mouth. There is just the right amount of spice and salinity, the latter beckoning you back for another sip and there is a haunting pencil lead note that forms the closing credits on the aftertaste. What a brilliant Haut-Bailly, perhaps the best that I have tasted in almost 20 years of tasting at this estate..Neal Martin, April/2017

James Suckling 98 points – This young wine shows such pinpoint precision with a full body, dense fruit and gorgeous intensity. Muscular yet toned and beautiful. It really builds on the finish. Very fine-grained. So long and beautiful. Sophisticated power. Oyster shell and iodine undertones. Traditional style yet with a modern interpretation. Savory..April/2017

Decanter 91 points – TOP 75 EXCITING WINES OF 2017 – A firm wine at 81IPT, the tannins are a little tighter than the grand vin, although nothing is masking those supple black brambly fruits. From a blend of 47% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Cabernet Franc, representing 25% of overall production., aged in 30% new oak. Following Dubourdieu, his long-term colleagues Valerie Lavigne, Christophe Olivier and Axel Marchal are consulting..January/2018

Renowned as one of the world’s most elegant wines, the character of Chateau Haut-Bailly is a series of unlikely paradoxes. It is as complex as it is balanced: deliberate and discrete, powerful and gentle, immediate and timeless. Each vintage is unique and true to itself just as each vintage is consistent and true to the unquestionable character of Haut-Bailly.