Château Haut Brion - Pessac-Léognan 2015

Wine Spectator

98 / 100

byJames Molesworththe1/24/2018

A brick house of a wine, loaded with roasted fig, warmed currant compote and plum reduction flavors that are as broad as they are deep, carried by warm tar, ganache and smoldering bay leaf and charcoal notes. A swath of
tobacco through the finish pulls everything together and ties it up with a bow of roasted mesquite. The core shows lean, muscular strength in spades. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2025 through 2045.
11,250 cases made.—J.M.

Jeb DUNNUCK

100 / 100

byJeb Dunnuckthe11/30/2017

Vinifera

5 / 5

the5/31/2016

Robe sombre. Le nez est somptueux. C’est sans doute l’un des nez les plus complexes parmi les premiers. Entrée en bouche évasée. Superbe développement avec une trame magistrale et, malgré la richesse de constitution, une sensation de fraîcheur intacte. Très grand Haut-Brion!

Wine Advocate

98-100 / 100

byNeal Martinthe5/29/2016

The 2015 Haut Brion, a blend of 50% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, was picked between 8 September and 5 October, and is matured in the same level of new oak (78%) and IPT (75) as the La Mission. It has a heavenly bouquet that like the La Mission bestows instant gratification - a veritable kaleidoscope of aromas so crystalline that you can pick them out one by one: dark plum, blackcurrant, Kalamata olive and graphite. It is tempting to just nose this all day. The palate has an indescribably stunning balance and like the La Mission, there is a paradoxical sense of intensity married to weightlessness. Everything here is so precise, so pure and yet as it crescendos towards the finish, it offers a profundity that is unmatched across Bordeaux in this vintage. Having had the pleasure of many great wines from this estate in the past - 1945, 1955, 1959, 1961 and 1989 - the 2015 belongs among that pantheon. Drink 2030-2075

Decanter.com

97 / 100

byJane Ansonthe5/2/2016

The Graves wine of the vintage (along with Haut-Bailly). Taking the highest proposition of first wine (55%) for several years and a good yield of 45hl/ha. The fruit and tannins reached full and perfect ripeness and the structure shows incredible cohesion, easily approaching the quality of the 2010 but with softer tannins. Beautifully complete with great integrity of coffee grounds and rich damson fruit. Opens up in the glass, the personality and complexity ripples through. A touch lower alcohol than La Mission at 14.9%abv and with 3.73pH for fresh balance. 58% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc and 78% new oak. May well be scored upwards when in bottle.2026-2045

Bettane & Desseauve

19,5 / 20

the4/28/2016

Aussi proche d’une certaine idée de la perfection bordelaise qu’on peut l’imaginer. Corps absolument somptueux, lié à la maturité folle, mais contrôlée du raisin, complémentarité parfaite des cépages (grosse moitié de cabernets, petite moitié de merlot), longueur étonnante, mais surtout réserve tannique phénoménale. Nous n’avons rien trouvé d’équivalent ni en Médoc, ni Rive droite. On oubliera le degré élevé du raisin, car le vin le vaut bien.

Vinous

95-97 / 100

byAntonio Gallonithe4/27/2016

The 2015 Haut-Brion is shaping up to be one of the wines of the vintage. Thrust, power and pure intensity come through loud and clear in the crème de cassis, blackberry jam, smoke, licorice and graphite flavors. Soaring aromatics and layers of intense fruit, all supported by a beam of firm tannin make the 2015 a wonderfully complete wine that will drink well for many, many decades. The unctuous fruit and baby fat will need time to melt away, but there is little doubt this a magical wine with huge potential for the future. The purity of flavors and textures will take your breath away.

Jancis Robinson

18,5 /

byJancis Robinsonthe4/26/2016

50% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon. Picked 8 September to 5 October. Much more aromatic than La Mission. Lovely silky tannins but masses of them. Very strict and savoury. Really dense but manages to be expressive and convincing. A megalith. 14.9% Drink 2030-2055

The Wine Cellar Insider

99 / 100

the4/23/2016

It is the sensuous texture that really makes this wine rock! The feel is pure silk and velvet and the impressive fragrance captivates with its floral, smoke, boysenberry, cassis and earthy aromatics. This wine has great color, real volume, depth of flavor and despite the fact that it is quite high in alcohol, there is no sense of heaviness or heat. It lacks the depth of the 2009 but it offers more elegance and silk on the palate. Made from a blend of 50% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Cabernet Franc, the wine reached 14.9% alcohol with a pH of 3.73 and represents 55% of the harvest. 98 - 100 Pts

timatkin.com

96 / 100

byTim Atkin MWthe4/20/2016

René Gabriel

19 / 20

the4/10/2016

50 % Merlot, 42 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 8 % Cabernet Franc. Sattes Purpur-Granat, dicht in der Mitte, lila Schimmer aussen. Wenn ich nicht gewusst hätte, dass ich da auf Haut-Brion auf einem Stuhl sitze und den Primeur verkoste, so hätte ich nasal eventuell glatt auf einen ganz grossen Kalifornier gesetzt. Das Bouquet; schwarze Schokolade, Minze und ein Hauch von Eucalyptus. Im Gaumen fleischig, massige Konturen, angerundete Tannine, aber auch genügend Gerbstoffe für ein sehr langes Leben, die Balance ist wunderbar, das nachhaltige, immer noch Konzentration zeigende Finale ist bereits jetzt schon mit viel dunklem Tabak und Heidelbeeren bestückt. «Gibt es hier möglicherweise vergleichbare Jahrgänge?», frage ich Jean-Philippe Délmas. Er antwortete: «Es wird hoffentlich nie Jahrgänge geben, welche sich genau einem bereits bestehenden Haut-Brion vergleichen lassen. In der Regel sind es bestenfalls mögliche Kombinationen zwischen zwei Jahrgängen. Aber das ist dann auch immer eine Hypothese. Wichtig ist es für uns, einen möglichst grossen Wein zu machen und diese Chancen haben wir heuer genutzt!» Beim Verabschieden bemerkte er noch, dass er natürlich die Chance hätte, bestehende Jahrgänge regelmässig nachzuverkosten. Dabei würde sich der 2011er Haut-Brion prächtig entwickeln. Vom Jahrgang her und vom aktuellen Marktpreis sei das momentan ein richtiger Geheimtipp. 19/20 2024 – 2055

Jamessuckling.com

97-98 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe4/5/2016

A structured and powerful Haut-Brion with so much finesse and beauty. Complex and long. It’s full and ultra-refined. Super length and polish. A formed and sexy Haut Brion.