CRITIC REVIEWS
Neal Martin
The 2019 Haut-Brion has an ethereal degree of transparency on the nose, perhaps the most delineated of all the 2019s, fabulous precision and detail considering the growing season. The palate is medium-bodied with fine bone tannins, unerring symmetry and poise. Cohesive from start to finish with an extraordinarily persistent and compelling closing. Off the charts. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.
William Kelley
Wafting from the glass with aromas of blackberries and plums mingled with notions of pencil shavings, burning embers and creamy new oak, the 2019 Haut-Brion is full-bodied, rich and fleshy, with a textural attack that segues into an ample and enveloping core of fruit, concluding with a long, expansive finish. Broad-shouldered and muscular, its rich, powdery tannins are already seamlessly integrated; and though it's labeled at 15% alcohol, far higher than the great vintages of yesteryear, it avoids any sense of over-ripeness.
JancisRobinson.com
48.7% Merlot, 43.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8.1% Cabernet Franc. Barrel sample. Flexes muscle this year. Deep and complex but broody and subdued on the nose. Big, bold palate with an impressive density of mouth-filling fruit. Huge tannic frame behind, the tannins plentiful but ripe and swathed in all that fruit. Just a touch more freshness than La Mission. Really long and persistent. (JL)