Mission Haut Brion - Pessac-Léognan 2018

Vinous

94

byAntonio Gallonithe3/31/2021

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is beautiful and expansive from the first taste. Dark cherry, mocha, herbs, licorice, rose petal and mint open effortlessly. All the elements are so well balanced. Although the 2018 is quite easy to appreciate at this stage, it also has terrific energy and more than enough verve to develop positively for several decades.

Wine Advocate

99

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe3/31/2021

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is a blend of 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it emerges from the glass with a first wave of stewed black and red plums, mulberries and black raspberries scents, followed by pronounced notions of warm cassis, clove oil, violets and chocolate box, with hints of cast-iron pan, pencil lead and forest floor coming through after a few minutes. The medium to full-bodied palate shimmers with energy, delivering layers of red and black fruits with earthy and mineral sparks and a texture so satiny you need to remember to look for it, finishing with amazing vibrancy. This is so wonderfully evocative and singular, and yet it feels like its holding something back. It makes for an impressive glass right now, but give it a good 5 years in bottle to allow further nuances to emerge and expect it to seriously reward those who can wait a good 12-15 years, when it should really hit its stride.

Jeb DUNNUCK

100

byJeb Dunnuckthe3/16/2021

Although it emerges from a similar terroir and the same winemaking team, the 2018 Château La Mission Haut-Brion is a dramatically different wine than the Haut-Brion and has a more concentrated, dense, powerful style that is all potential at this point. Dense purple-hued, with lots of crème de cassis, black cherries, smoked meats, lead pencil, graphite, and crushed stone aromatics, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a concentrated mid-palate, masses of ripe tannins, integrated acidity, and one hell of a finish. This blockbuster, backward, monster of a La Mission Haut-Brion needs to be forgotten for a good decade (or more) but is going to be just about immortal.

The Wine Cellar Insider

99

byJeff Levethe3/16/2021

Black, red fruit and hints of blue fruit, cigar box, tobacco leaf, tar, smoke, espresso and campfire notes create the enticing aromatic profile. The wine is powerful, full-bodied and concentrated, taking up a lot of room on your palate. Luxurious, palate staining, polished, and energetic in your mouth, the finish lingers with layers of smoked red, blue and black fruits, stone, tobacco leaf, oyster shell and smoke. I really like the length and purity in the finish. The end note kept going long after the wine left my glass. The wine blends 57.5% Merlot with 42.5%, 14.4% ABV.

Vinous

97

byNeal Martinthe3/12/2021

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion was double decanted and assessed after two hours, and the over the following 24 hours compared directly with – what else? – Haut-Brion. They were initially poured blind. This has retained a very perfumed and hedonistic bouquet of black fruit and pressed violets, and less of the graphite that I picked up out of barrel; touches of ash/fireside hearth develop with time. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-boned tannins, and quite structured, more so than the Haut-Brion. There is a brightness here that I really like. Vivid, animated and brimming with energy and still incredibly persistent on the finish. A fabulous La Mission Haut-Brion that deserves several years in bottle, and though I would not rank it alongside, say, the 1955 or 1989, it is a magnificent Pessac-Léognan.

Wine Spectator

96

byJames Molesworththe2/1/2021

Tightly packed, with its core of steeped blackberry, black currant preserve and plum paste notes bristling to emerge fully but held in check for now by a swath of tar, warmed licorice and sweet tobacco. There's a great tug of earth through the finish but the fruit keeps the upper hand, even while closed, thanks to its finishing kick. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2025 through 2040. –JM

Yvesbeck.wine

96

byYves Beckthe1/26/2021

Bouquet subtil, équilibré, avec de fines notes d'élevage suivies de nuances fumées et fruitées. Touche de thym. Dès l'attaque le vin surprend par sa finesse, son côté élancé et ses élégants mais puissants tannins. Ces derniers présentent un grain très fin et sont en phase avec le côté juteux de l'acidité. Celle-ci confère d'ailleurs beaucoup de fraîcheur et de pep à l'ensemble du palais. Un vin qui brille par son harmonie et sa persistance aromatique.

Jamessuckling.com

98

byJames Sucklingthe1/21/2021

Enticing aromas of currant, crushed stone, blueberry, lead pencil, iodine and graphite follow through to a full body with round, chewy tannins that are polished and powerful, yet balanced and beautiful. In the end, the tannins are compact and tight at the finish. But you want to drink it. Try after 2027, when it will open.

Decanter.com

97

byJane Ansonthe1/12/2021

Vinous

96-98

byNeal Martinthe11/15/2019

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion was picked from 10 September to 2 October at 44hL/ha. It has a perfumed and wonderfully delineated bouquet with blackberry, briary, pressed violets and graphite aromas, perhaps even more precise than the Haut-Brion at this stage. The palate is medium-bodied with silky smooth tannins. This is almost clinical in terms of precision, symmetrical, with a powerful, almost Burgundian finish that reveals amazing persistence. This is a fabulous La Mission Haut-Brion and a contender for one of the wines of the vintage.

WeinWisser

19,5

byTjark Witzgallthe5/7/2019

Bettane & Desseauve

96

by Bettane & Desseauvethe5/3/2019

Très beau milieu de bouche par la chair et le velouté, long, déjà fumé, harmonieux, plus accessible que haut-brion, un peu moins complet.

Vinous

90-93

byAntonio Gallonithe5/3/2019

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is bright and punchy, with lovely radiant fruit and a good deal of immediacy. Sweet red and purplish berry fruit, mint, tobacco, blood orange and wild flowers all grace this expressive, open-knit La Mission. It will be interesting to see what develops with élevage. Today, La Mission is decidedly expressive, and yet its typical layers of nuance are not yet especially in evidence. In 2018, La Mission is 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc.

Vinifera

94-96

byJacques Perrinthe5/1/2019

Robe soutenue. Il exhale des notes finement épicées sur fond de petits fruits. Corps à l'attaque charnue, évasée. Très beau volume de bouche sans sensation de lourdeur. La trame est fine, réglissée, assez serrée. Elle accompagne le vin sur une finale déjà très ouverte.

The Wine Cellar Insider

97-99

byJeff Levethe4/23/2019

Take all the power La Mission Haut Brion is capable of harnessing, add the elegance, freshness, purity and layers of complexity that come at you in waves and you have an idea of what to expect in your glass. There is purity of the fruit with a natural smoke, tobacco leaf and burning ember profile in every sip. And the finish, it kept going long after the wine left my glass. Made from 57.5% Merlot and 42.5% and reaching 14.4% alcohol with a pH of 3.76, the harvest took place September 19-October 14. The Grand Vin represents 53% of the harvest.

Wine Advocate

98-100

byLisa Perrotti-Brownthe4/23/2019

The 2018 La Mission Haut-Brion is composed of 53.5% Merlot, 42.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3.6% Cabernet Franc, harvested September 10 to October 2. Deep purple-black in color, it slowly unfurls to reveal a beguiling nose of earth and soft-spoken fruit, opening with wild blueberries, wet slate, pencil lead and fresh black cherries giving way to a serious core of blackcurrant cordial, baked plums and wild sage, and then exposing delicate wafts of rose hip tea and candied violets. Full-bodied, the palate is very tightly wound and super intense with amazing restraint and energy focused around very firm, exquisitely fine-grained tannins and seamless freshness, finishing incredibly long and fantastically multilayered. Extraordinary wine.

Wine Enthusiast

95-97

byRoger Vossthe4/17/2019

While the wine is certainly structured, it has all the finesse and elegance that is associated with this estate. Beautiful berry flavors are packed with acidity but supported by generous tannins. This is impressive and obviously will age well.

Jamessuckling.com

97-98

byJames Sucklingthe4/12/2019

A tight and linear red with fantastic oyster-shell, iodine and crushed-stone character, complementing the currants and blackberries. Extremely long and fresh.

Jean-Marc QUARIN

94

byJean-Marc Quarinthe4/8/2019