Château Haut-Bailly - Pessac-Léognan 2014

Le Point

17 / 20

par Jacques Dupont le 21/05/2015

Fruits noirs, épices, prune, , bouche aux tanins soyeux, belle matière qui demande à s’arrondir en finale, le fruité est discret mais les tanins de milieu de bouche veloutés, ferme, assez serré mais soyeux en milieu de bouche. 

Vinous

93-96 / 100

par Antonio Galloni le 11/05/2015

The 2014 Haut Bailly is exceptionally polished, creamy and textured from the very first taste. Black cherries, plums, smoke, tobacco and incense meld together in an ample, voluptuous wine built on pure texture. The high percentage of Merlot gives the 2014 relatively soft contours to balance the pure intensity of the Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a remarkably balanced, polished, young Haut-Bailly. The blend is 66% Cabernet Sauvignon and 34% Merlot.

The Wine Cellar Insider

93-95 / 100

par Jeff Leve le 05/05/2015

Slow smoked plum, anise and black cherry liqueur on the nose, the wine feels fresh. There is volume, length and complexity, refined tannins and a vibrant, dark blackberry and plum finish. From a blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon and 34% Merlot, the wine reached 13% alcohol with a pH of 3.7. 93-95 Pts

Wine Advocate

91-93 / 100

par Neal Martin le 30/04/2015

The Château Haut-Bailly 2014 is a blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon and 34% Merlot picked between 24 September and 15 October. Véronique Sanders explained that it represents a much higher percentage of Cabernet because of its quality, the Merlot undergoing some saignée due to the size of berries. Matured in 50% new oak and including 8% vin de presse, it has a lovely bouquet with superb delineation, touches of undergrowth and tobacco infusing the pure black fruit, stirrings of black tea emerging with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with edgy, crisp tannin on the entry and good acidity (ph 3.7), perhaps more than say, the 2012. There is a fine sense of energy here and at dovetails into a lightly spiced, slightly saline finish. This is a slightly less ostentatious than recent vintages, a little more restrained but the terroir really shows through. Excellent. Expect this to land at the top of my banded score.

La Revue du Vin de France

18-19 / 20

le 28/04/2015

Ici, les cabernets sauvignon trament le millésime avec des tanins particulièrement élégants. Il est finement fumé sur des notes de tabac blond, signe d’une prise de bois très juste. C’est la délicatesse mêlée à la puissance d’une année que Haut-Bailly a maîtrisée savamment.

Jancis Robinson

17,5 / 20

par Jancis Robinson le 22/04/2015

66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot. They are deliberately vinifying lighter and lighter with less extraction so that this blend contains 8% press wine. 
Rich and substantial but racier than the old Haut-Bailly style. Really very well mastered. Good balance without excess acidity or tannin. Very persistent. The concentration was presumably helped enormously by the saignée that produced the Rosé. Just a little stolid but a very impressive 2014. 

Drink 2020-2034 (17.5+)

Asian Palate

92-94 / 100

par Jeannie Cho Lee MW le 20/04/2015

Sumptuous and generous with Haut-Bailly's classic restraint and delicacy. A vintage that is a balance of dark fruits, ripe, high tannins and freshness. A beautiful, seamless wine that is quiet and reserved but with great aging potential. A wine to lay down for a decade before enjoying.

Decanter.com

18,25 / 20

par Jane Anson le 17/04/2015

Lovely restrained black fruit and pencil shavings on the nose, beautifully extracted, although the fruit is not quite as vibrant as in the best vintages of this excellent property. Good persistency, a supremely elegant take on the vintage, in the line of 2001. 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot. A masterclass as ever in precision winemaking, and although there is 8% of press wine it gives weight without straining the structure. Denis Dubourdieu consultant here for last 17 years, since 1998. Drink: 2025-2040 (94)

Jamessuckling.com

93-94 / 100

par James Suckling le 10/04/2015

A subtle and refined wine with savory, salty and delicately fruity character. Full body, fine tannins and a fresh finish. Compacted and tight. Lovely tension. Precise.

timatkin.com

94 / 100

par Tim Atkin MW le 07/04/2015

René Gabriel

17 / 20

par René Gabriel le 01/04/2015

Dunkles Granat, recht satt in der Mitte, rubiner Rand. Fein toastiger Beginn, rote Pflaumen, helle Edelhölzer, dominikanischer Tabak, zeigt reife Beerenkomponente zwischen roten bis blauen Früchten, feine Trockenheit aber auch mit wunderschöner Würze ausgestattet. Mittlerer Gaumen mit guten Muskeln und einer ausgeglichenen, aber auch fordernden Adstringenz, endet mit eher sandigen Konturen. Irgendwie unsexy aber dafür klassisch. Will heissen; er gleicht seinen geduldigen, reservierten Jahrgängen wie 1988, 1996, 2006 und hat auch ähnliche Gerbstoffkonturen. Braucht lange und wird klassisch. Für mich persönlich hat er momentan fast ein Bisschen Mühe an seine eigenen (ebenfalls nicht einfachen Jahrgänge 2011 und 2012) anzuschliessen. Es bleibt zu hoffen, dass er dies – bis in seine Genussreife – schaffen wird. Dann würde er noch einen Punkt zulegen. 17/20 2022 – 2040

Wine Enthusiast

95 / 100

par Roger Voss le 01/04/2015

94–96. Barrel Sample. This is a very successful wine, with wood and fruit notes that combine seamlessly with layers of acidity. At its base is a serious structure of dark tannins; on top, juicy black fruits shine. This is a wine for long-term aging.

My Bettane + Desseauve

17,5 / 20

par Bettane & Desseauve

Nez racé, d’une délicatesse exquise et d’une complexité rare, fruit très pur, notes d’épices et de cèdre, bouche dense et raffinée à la fois, tannin très harmonieux, beaucoup de tenue, de fraîcheur et d’énergie. Un Haut- Bailly ample, généreux, vibrant et plein de personnalité. L’une des réussites majeures de l’appellation.