Region | |
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Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pessac-Léognan |
Colour | Red |
Type | Still |
The second wine of La Mission Haut Brion. Some of the fruit from the now defunct La Tour Haut Brion vineyard is included in this wine as well as the younger vines of La Mission. All of the Cabernet Franc that usually goes into La Mission Haut Brion has been used for La Chapelle, which constitutes 21.5% of the blend, with 36.5% Merlot, and 42% Cabernet Sauvignon.
The 2016 La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion is made from 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36.5% Merlot, and 21.5% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet in color, it skips out of the glass with exuberant scents of Morello cherries, blueberry compote, and blackcurrant pastilles, plus suggestions of rose oil, cracked black pepper, and forest floor. The palate is medium to full-bodied with generous black fruit layers plus red berry sparks to lend lift, supported by grainy tannins, finishing long and perfumed.
Minerals and blueberries with plenty of blackcurrant character. Medium body and silky tannins. Pretty second wine of La Mission.
The success of La Mission is even more impressive as this was not an easy vintage for the Haut-Brion stable. They are close to the city here, and things got hot on their gravel soils. It is one of the main reasons that alcohols are lower than in recent years, because various plots shut down and stopped accumulating sugar. Although yields were high at 52hl/ha, the extra volume was mostly put towards the third wine. They have performed an amazing sleight of hand here, as La Chapelle has plenty of the signature of its brilliant big brother. There is less persistency but still plenty of juicy, ripe fruits and a toasty edge to the aromatics that is a classic signature of the house. There is a gap between the two wines, perhaps more than in some other years, but it's a space where you would be very happy to sit and enjoy the view. From a blend of 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36.5% Merlot and 21.5% Cabernet Franc, aged in 25% new oak. 3.6pH.
Drinking Window 2023 - 2040
Tasted blind. Thick and sweet. Just a tad heavy. Savoury/meaty finish. Dry end. Very Cabernet.
Drink 2025 – 2038
Looking first at the second wine of the estate, the 2016 La Chapelle de La Mission Haut Brion is 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36.5% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc. It’s a head turner of a second wine and has plenty of grand vin character, yet it’s more front end-loaded, with beautiful tobacco leaf, cigar smoke, graphite, and earthy red and black fruits all emerging from the glass. Medium to full-bodied, deep, balanced, with a sexy yet also elegant texture, it’s a winner to enjoy over the coming 2+ decades. 2019 - 2039.
The mix of black fruits on the nose is sweet but the palate starts with fresh bilberry. The tannins are fine integrated the mid and back palate have concentration rich fruit but it finishes lighter fragrant fresh. 2023-35
Made with 25% of the total production at La Mission in 2016, this is a subtle, serious, appealingly restrained wine with real finesse and poise. Savoury, fresh tobacco aromas segue into nuanced, sappy, dark berry fruit flavours and a patina of scented oak. 2022-30
The 2016 La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion is blended of 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36.5% Merlot and 21.5% Cabernet Franc. Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, it absolutely sings of red roses, black tea and tilled black soil with a core of crushed blackberries, Morello cherries and cassis plus a hint of cinnamon stick. Medium-bodied, the palate delivers a great intensity of ripe black berries and floral layers, framed by soft, silken tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. 2019 - 2035
The 2016 La Chapelle de la Mission Haut Brion is a blend of 36.5% Merlot, 21.5% Cabernet Franc and 42% Cabernet Sauvignon picked from 19 September to 14 October. Matured in 23% new oak, it has a very succinct bouquet with tensile black cherry and pressed flower aromas, subtle at first but soon gaining intensity in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp tannin, very precise and focused with razor-sharp definition. This is one of the most sophisticated La Chapelle de la Mission Haut Brion releases that I have tasted from barrel and it bodes well for the future. I expect this will nudge past the 2015 once in bottle. Let's see! Drink 2022-2040.
Sumptuous first-growth suavity on the nose. Sinews and dry finish but a little austere. Just slightly muscular. Dry but not drying finish.
Drink 2023-2033