The 2019 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion is a seriously impressive second wine that punches well above its weight. Smooth, structured, and loaded with character, it’s a great way to experience the magic of Haut-Brion without the flagship price tag.

Jamessuckling.com | JS 96
Published: Mar 3, 2022

This is very beautiful with pure blackcurrant and rose-petal aromas, together with wet earth and black truffle, following through to a medium-to full-bodied palate with ultra-fine tannins that coat the mouth and deliver a fantastic impression. The complexity of flavor is so satisfying in the finish. Try after 2026. 

Decanter | D 94
Published: Jam 5, 2022
Drink: 2024-2040

Heady red cherries on the nose, deep and seductive. Great energy here, this is pulsing with life, good roundness but also a cooling element - touches of chewy blue fruits, mint, graphite, pencil lead and minerality all of which give texture and nuance. Round and plump in texture and mouthfeel but really well defined and linear with straight talking fruit. Great drive to a crystalline finish. Gorgeous. A blend of 72.8% Merlot, 16.3% Cabernet Franc and 10.9% Cabernet Sauvignon.
Closure: Cork
Alcohol: 15.00%
Body: Full
Oak: Oaked
Grapes: 16.3% Cabernet Franc 10.9% Cabernet Sauvignon 72.8% Merlot

The Wine Advocate | RP 91
Published: Apr 7, 2022
Drink: 2025-2045

Aromas of rich, plummy fruit, loamy soil, cigar wrapper and toasty oak preface the 2019 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion, a medium to full-bodied, broad and fleshy wine with fine depth at the core, succulent acids and powdery tannins. Ample and enveloping, it'smore demonstrative than its counterpart, La Chapelle de La Mission Haut-Brion from across the street.

Jean-Philippe Delmas is delighted with his 2019s, and justly so, as this rich, dramatic and unusually powerful vintage is a great success for Château Haut-Brion (and its neighbor, La Mission Haut-Brion). In the vineyards, a touch more Cabernet Sauvignon is being planted these days, but the evolution is subtle, as the 2019 blend remains very much in line with tradition at this address, at 49% Merlot and 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the balance Cabernet Franc. That predominance of Merlot, combined with Haut-Brion's warm mesoclimate, have delivered an above-average alcohol level, labelled at 15%. On the white side of the ledger, we can expect a touch more Sauvignon Blanc in the future, as Delmas notes that Sémillon tends to lose its acidity rapidly in warm vintages. In both colors, the vineyard team are working to mitigate the effects of climate change and minimize the quantities of copper employed in treatments throughout the year. In the cuvier and chai, winemaking remains very classical, with fermentation in Haut-Brion's proprietary two-tier stainless steel tanks, designed to maximize the quantity of high-quality free-run juice; malolactic fermentation in tank; and maturation in new oak barrels, some 80% of which are produced in house by Séguin Moreau (complemented by purchased barrels from Demptos and Taransaud). White grapes are whole-cluster pressed with great attention to pH, the musts protected with dry ice, and bottled with some 25 parts per million free sulfites, without much in the way of dissolved carbon dioxide. 

Haut-brion.com

Similar in style and elegance to its elder, the Château Haut-Brion red, this second wine brings together all the unique attributes of a fine wine, while reaching maturity more quickly. This wine has carried the name Château Bahans Haut-Brion since the first years of the twentieth century and was renamed Le Clarence de Haut-Brion beginning with the 2007 vintage, as a tribute to Clarence Dillon, who acquired the property in 1935.

2019 Tasting notes
Dark red colour. The nose is intense
and charming with red fruit aromas.
Starts out delicious yet tight-knit on the palate,
underpinned by smooth, concentrated tannins.
Fresh fruity flavours dominate the finish, leaving
a lasting impression of a pleasant, ethereal wine. 

The weather
The winter of 2018-2019 was mild and dry. Cool temperatures in spring slowed down vine growth. Flowering took place in ideal conditions, without coulure (shot berries) nor millerandage (abnormal fruit set). Storm Miguel swept across the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region on the 7th of June, although our grapes were fortunately spared. Heavy, regular rainfall was conducive to vegetative growth, leading the vines to develop an impressive leaf canopy. The rain came to a sudden halt on the 22nd of June, and a series of successive heatwaves ensued. July was the third hottest in history after 2006 and 2013, with temperatures reaching a record-breaking 42°C on the 23rd. Fortunately, rain fell on the 26th, followed by cool nights in August, propitious to the synthesis of anthocyanins. Véraison (colour change) was slow but uninterrupted. September was marked by fine, dry and sunny conditions, interspersed by welcome rainfall. Thanks to this ideal spell of weather, all the grape varieties were harvested at peak ripeness and at a leisurely pace.

Harvest dates: From September 10th to October 3rd

Blend: 
Merlot: 72.8%
Cabernet Franc: 16.3%
Cabernet Sauvignon: 10.9%

New barrels: 30.2%

Alcohol: 15%

Bottling date: From May 21st to 25th  2021