Chateau Haut-Bailly 2007

The tannins are uncompromisingly firm, uncompromisingly fresh and good; the whole impression is perfectly balanced, but with the texture of a wine that needs to age. It also benefits from a delicious blackberry finish. A classic.

Shows complex aromas of dark fruits, with bitter chocolate and floral notes. Full-bodied, with pretty, silky tannins. Very well-integrated and long. Builds on the palate. Best after 2013. 5,835 cases made.

Perfect for drinking now but sure to last for another decade or more. The aromatics of this are just gorgeous, unfurling in the glass to show russet and undergrowth, liquorice, soft dark chocolate and savoury but welcoming berry fruit. This 2007 vintage saw a cool summer but a warm September and October, meaning careful work in the vineyard and patience was necessary. Underestimated on release. The wines might not have the structure for long ageing as with 2010 or 2000, but they are blossoming right now, and offer great pleasure; classic balance.

Good deep ruby-red. Primary, high-pitched aromas of crushed berries and spices, with a whiff of artificial flowers. Juicy, pure and intense, with lovely cut to the raspberry and spice flavors. Finishes with good length and lift and a lightly herbal character.

Fully mature, lighter-styled wine, as you would expect given the vintage. Still, the wine offered pleasure and character with its dark cherry fruit, herbs, and tobacco. Softly textured and quite easy to drink, enjoy this for its charm now while waiting for the three subsequent vintages, 2008, 2009, and 2010, to develop.

A step back from the 2006, the 2007 Château Haut-Bailly is nevertheless a forward, pretty, medium-bodied, and nicely balanced effort with outstanding purity. Textbook red and black fruit, loamy earth, and sweet tobacco define the aromatics, and while it doesn't have the concentration of a great vintage, it's a satisfying, elegant Pessac-Leognan to enjoy over the coming 7-8 years.

Very deep purple-ruby. Spicy, aromatic bouquet with lovely floral notes, plum skins, direct Cabernet expression, subtly inky, with smoky nuances and licorice. Meaty palate, fairly velvety tannins, soft contours, velour-like flow, aromatic finish showing mostly blueberry; only in the very end does the perhaps still underestimated potential come through. Haut-Bailly is, as in recent years, among the best of the appellation.

70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc. Very deep purple-ruby. Spicy, aromatic bouquet with lovely floral notes, plum skins, direct Cabernet expression, a faint inky touch, with smoky nuances and licorice. Fleshy palate, the tannins quite velvety, soft contours, a velour-like flow, aromatic finish showing mostly blueberry; only at the end does a perhaps still underestimated potential come into play. This wine underscores the high quality level of recent years. Haut-Bailly is once again among the best of the appellation. (18/20). 13: It couldn’t quite carry its en primeur expectations fully into the bottle. Lovely Léognan nose, still red plums mixed with light tobacco. On the palate, everything would be in order if the slightly too peppery acidic core didn’t cling so stubbornly to the tongue. Drunk on the MS Europa on the way from Hamburg to Bordeaux.

Elegant, deep, closed bouquet with fine woods, blue and black berries, tobacco, black cherries. Balanced, elegant, multi-layered, full palate with a silky, dense structure, powerful fruit, very well-integrated tannins, and full aromatics. Very long, fresh, velvety finish. 18/20 2014 - 2030

High Cabernet Sauvignon and oak upped to around 60% new, higher than usual but well integrated at 17 years on. This is showing well right now, fully in the drinking window and extremely moreish, with gentle fine tannins, elegant architecture, soft blackberry and blueberry fruits, a velvety texture and a drawn-out finish. Harvest September 21 to October 12. Denis Dubourdieu consultant.

The wine reveals itself to be very classic and precise, with tannins that meld seamlessly into the fabric and above all a great length. A refined bottle.

A delicate, trembling nose that then turns ripe and hedonistic, with notes of graphite, plum, and peony. Concentrated black fruit on the palate, with lovely fluidity and texture, for a classic vintage of Haut Bailly.

An early, warm spring favored flowering, which occurred more than three weeks ahead of schedule. The technical team at Haut-Bailly successfully managed strong downy mildew pressure following the heavy rainfall in May. Summer was marked by cool temperatures that slowed the ripening of the grapes. Harvest took place between September 21 and October 12. Precise vinification allowed for gentle extractions. The Cabernets-Sauvignons, deeply colored and powerful, form the core of the blend at 70%. They are accompanied by the softness of the Merlots and also by Cabernet Franc. A well-expressive bouquet with fruity and spicy notes. A touch of blond tobacco. On the palate, the wine is tasty, juicy, and well supported by its tannins. The aromatic expression is filigreed, yet the wine shows freshness and is well supported by its structure.

Dark color, with good intensity and vibrancy. Fruity, ripe, pure nose with an inky note. Very fruity on entry, then dense and flavorful, with depth and slightly present tannins, even though the taste is pleasant. Normal length. Blend: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc.

A dense wine, very much in the line of powerful wines from Haut-Bailly. Flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet berry fruits and richness are dominant, the acidity a fine balancing act to give a burst of freshness.

An extremely complex bouquet of cedar, unsmoked cigar tobacco, berry fruit, and earth is followed by a medium-bodied, silky-textured wine that builds incrementally, impressing the taster with its purity, overall equilibrium, and length. It is a quintessentially elegant, flavorful wine to drink now and over the next 12–14 years.