Haut Bailly - Pessac-Léognan 2021

Vinous

93

byNeal Martinthe4/2/2024

The 2021 Haut-Bailly harked back to the older style when I tasted it out of barrel during en primeur. Now bottled since the end of March, it has developed a very composed and harmonious bouquet with blackberry, briar, cedar and melted tar scents that gradually gain intensity in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, again quite saline with hints of black olive and Japanese nori tincturing the black fruit. It segues into a classically styled finish, with a welcome touch of black pepper on the aftertaste. Give this three of four years in bottle, and it should drink well for 20+ years.

Jamessuckling.com

97

byJames Sucklingthe4/2/2024

The winemaker calls this wine chic, and it is, with enticing aromas of blackcurrants, chocolate, walnuts, nutmeg, bark and forest floor. Some graphite and dark mushrooms. Medium-bodied with very integrated tannins that melt into the wine, with super length and finesse at the end. It’s the subtle texture and pure and complex fruit character that impress. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 22% merlot, 10% petit verdot and 3% cabernet franc. Drinkable now, but this will age beautifully.

Vinous

96

byAntonio Gallonithe2/28/2024

The 2021 Haut-Bailly is incredibly poised, even if it is clearly a wine of reserve in this vintage. Its vertical build speaks of pure sophistication. Time in the glass brings out hints of dried herbs, menthol, licorice, pine, blackberry and underbrush. Most of the blend is Cabernet, so the flavor profile and overall structural feel is quite savory. I can't wait to see how the 2021 ages. It may very well surprise down the road.

Wine Advocate

94

byWilliam Kelleythe2/22/2024

The 2021 Haut-Bailly, a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc, reveals a complex, brooding bouquet with aromas of blackcurrant, spices, plums, spring flowers and smoke. Medium to full-bodied, it’s a lively, rather muscular wine with a fleshy, dense core of fruit, tangy acids and powdery tannins. Despite its firm character, I like its overall balance. It should age gracefully over the next 10 years.

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

96

byJane Ansonthe1/30/2024

If you had to pick an estate in Bordeaux that can rise to the challenge of a cool vintage, Haut-Bailly would have to be on the shortlist, and you can see the precision that they are able to craft here. In bottle it retains a knitted down, subdued, reserved feel, with estate signature, and plenth of blueberry, loganberry, cassis, slate, crushed rock and gunsmoke, poised and full of energy. Small 19hl/h yield, meaning that in this first year with the new cellar they used just 20 of the smallest size vats (out of 50 in total). Harvest September 27 to October 11. Axel Marchal consultant.

Jamessuckling.com

95-96

byJames Sucklingthe6/8/2022

Lots of graphite and crushed-stone character with redcurrants and pine needles. Medium body with silky and layered tannins. Pretty balance and elegance. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 22% merlot, 10% petit verdot and 3% cabernet franc.

Jeb DUNNUCK

93-95

byJeb Dunnuckthe6/2/2022

The 2021 Château Haut-Bailly checks in as 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, and the rest Cabernet Franc. It's another elegant, pure, incredibly balanced wine from this château, offering complex aromatics (cassis, smoked tobacco, spicy wood, and earth), medium body, ripe, supple tannins, and a great finish. Hitting 13% alcohol with a pH of 3.9, this seamless beauty will drink nicely right out of the gate yet evolve for 25-30 years. 93-95+

Bettane & Desseauve

94-95

by Bettane & Desseauvethe5/24/2022

Corps et texture impeccables. À ce stade, le développement aromatique est en retrait. Il faudrait idéalement carafer les échantillons deux ou trois heures à l’avance. Le vin n’était présenté qu’au château, ce qui a limité notre expérience.

The Vintage Journal

95-96

byAndrew Caillard MWthe5/17/2022

Medium-deep colour. Beautiful blackcurrant pastille violet graphite, roasted chestnut aromas. A lovely refreshing palate with dense blackcurrant pastille, blackberry fruits, very good mid-palate richness, roasted chestnut nuances and persistent al dente tannins. Finishes chalky firm and minerally. Beautiful wine with lovely fruit definition and torque. 65% cabernet sauvignon, 22% merlot, 10% petit verdot, 3% cabernet franc.

Alexandre Ma

93-94

byAlexandre Mathe5/16/2022

Haut-Bailly shows a more delicate image in 2021. Different from the solemnity and depth of the previous three vintages, this one focuses more on the expression of purity, especially the fresh and juicy fruitiness. The later harvest gives this wine a relatively ideal tannic texture. The 10% Petit Verdot is the highlight of the wine, infusing some spicy notes to the mild fruit aromas. As the first vintage of the new cellar, they did face a lot of challenges, but with Haut-Bailly's capability, it will surely continue to overwhelm our taste buds in the coming vintages. Let’s wait and see. Haut-Bailly????2021??????????????????????????????,??????????????,??????????????????????????????????10%??????????,??????????2021???????????????????????,????????????????????????,??????????????????????????????????

The Wine Cellar Insider

94-96

byJeff Levethe5/16/2022

Initially you notice the blackberries, black plums and black currants before moving on to the tobacco, flowers, spice and smoke in the aromatic profile. Supple, refined and elegant, perhaps the best way to describe the wine is modern chic, or modern classic, if you prefer. The tannins are soft and polished, the fruit is pure, clean and fresh, with a salty, mildly-chalky, supple endnote. Although it is going to probably always be a bit reticent in character, you will be able to approach and enjoy this wine in its youth, as well as age it for more complexity. The wine blends 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. The blend represents the the highest percentage of Petit Verdot in the history of the estate. 13% ABV, pH 3.9. The harvest took place September 27 to October 11. The Grand Vin was produced from 50% of the harvest. 2021 is the first vintage produced in their new, state-of-the-art cellars. Drink from 2025-2055. 94-96

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

95

byJane Ansonthe5/13/2022

Vinous

93-95

byNeal Martinthe5/12/2022

The 2021 Haut-Bailly is built around 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, the blend employing less Merlot and more Petit Verdot this year since the latter was not affected by frost. It was picked between September 27 and October 11 and matured in 50% new oak with 10% vin de presse. Allowed to open in the glass, it unfurls to reveal blackberry, briar, touches of crushed stone and cedar. The taut, fresh palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit and fine acidity. This is back to the older style of Haut-Bailly in some ways; less opulent, in keeping with the style of the vintage, and delivering good weight on the finish, even if there is not the persistent aftertaste of previous vintages. The great virtue of this Haut-Bailly is the sapidity that marks the conclusion. The kind of Pessac-Léognan that needs to be decanted then poured at the dinner table.

Vinous

94-96

byAntonio Gallonithe5/11/2022

The 2021 Haut-Bailly is a dark, rather somber wine. The aromatics alone are captivating, but there are strong savory inflections from the high percentage of Petit Verdot in this year's blend. This deceptively mid-weight Haut-Bailly has plenty to offer. Spice, leather, tobacco and incense linger. The final blend also includes 10% press wine.

vvwine

95-97

byAdrian Van Velsenthe5/10/2022

(65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc. Kräftiges Rubin. Die Nase ist tiefgründig und kühl, ein fantastischer Duft, florale Noten, Cassis, Brombeeren, subtil das Holz vom Fassausbau. Der Gaumen ist würzig, frisch, klar und rein wie ein Bergbach, der Wein hat eine sehr gute Struktur, zeigt viel Cabernet-Charakter, das ist einmal mehr pure Präzision, die Gerbstoffe sind markant, super fein verwoben, die Säure perfekt dosiert. Im Abgang von sehr schöner Länge, endet rotfruchtig und mit delikater Würze. Wie immer sie es auf Haut-Bailly auch machen, das ist einmal mehr ausgezeichnet. 2026-2043+ (Verkostet im April 2022. Château Haut-Bailly)

Anthocyanes

95-97

byYohan Castaingthe5/6/2022

19 hl/ha. 50 % de grand vin. Haut-Bailly est étonnamment charmeur et délicat et se pare, dans ce millésime, d'un charme fou. Des notes de violette, de mure, de myrtille, de fruits frais noirs et une touche de réglisse/fusain. Sapide et velouté en bouche, très beaux tanins, une bouche sur l'allonge avec un grain d'une très grande précision. Finale légèrement structurante, ce qui sera gommé pendant les élevages, pour un vin d'une très grande race. Un Haut-Bailly très identitaire qui vieillira à merveille pendant 20 à 30 ans.

Wine Advocate

94-95

byWilliam Kelleythe4/29/2022

A classic in the making, the 2021 Haut-Bailly wafts from the glass with aromas of dark berries and wild plums mingled with sweet spices, loamy soil, raw cocoa and violets. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and concentrated, with bright acids, ultra-refined tannins and a long, penetrating finish, it's a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, only 22% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. With yields of a mere 19 hectoliters per hectare, it's impressively intensely flavored despite its quintessentially elegant, classically proportioned profile. In many respects, it may represent the Cabernet-driven modern-day alter ego of the superb Merlot-dominant 1998 Haut-Bailly. (94 - 95)+

Decanter.com

95

byGeorgina Hindlethe4/1/2022

Seductive blackcurrant and juniper with purple floral touches on the nose. Smooth texture with high acidity giving sharp strawberry fruit balanced by both savoury and mineral touches - slate, crushed stone, smoke, violets and dark chocolate - very much in the style of the vintage with no harshness or overt opulence but instead gives a pure sense of classicism, restraint and refinement. Elegant and well structured with a long determined finish - this will continue to deliver pleasure for a long time. 10% press wine. No chaptalisation. 30% grand vin. 3.9pH. 3% Cabernet Franc completes the blend. Yield 19hl/ha. First year in the new cellar.