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Haut Brion Blanc 2017

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pessac-Léognan
ColourWhite
TypeStill
Grape VarietySauvignon Blanc/Semillon

The undisputed king of Bordeaux's dry white wines. Produced in miniscule quantities. The 2.8 hectare vineyard rarely makes much more than 500 dozen bottles a year from a blend of around 2/3 Semillon and 1/3 Sauvignon Blanc.

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Label

Tasting Notes

A blend of 56.2% Sauvignon Blanc and 43.8% Semillon, the 2017 Haut-Brion Blanc prances out with showy scents of pink grapefruit, fresh pineapple, and passionfruit with suggestions of crushed stones, coriander seed, and candlewax plus a waft of marzipan. The medium-bodied palate is expressive with impressive restraint, delivering gregarious fruit at this early stage, but holding back so many fine mineral and savory layers, finishing with epic tension and persistence. This is heart-thumping stuff.

100
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, The Wine Independent, December 2022

This is so reserved and tight, yet you can sense density and depth that seems endless, like a black well. Full-bodied, but agile and lively. Serious flavors of lemon peel, lemon grass and slate. It goes on for minutes. Thought-provoking wine, in a sublime way. Try after 2025.

97
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, January 2020

Both La Mission and Haut Brion Blanc are incredibly accomplished, sit-up-and-take-notice whites this year, showcasing the potential brilliance and longevity of white wines in 2017. The Sauvignon Blanc comes through as a slight wildness on the attack because the intensity is just so clear, with touches of white flowers and chamomile. It hits all the right notes, evolving into wonderfully polished flavours of white peach, fleshy apricot and rosemary that just keep on coming, hitting your palate with mouthwatering precision. La Mission has all the finessed aromatics on the attack, while Haut Brion has the length. 3.22pH.
Drinking Window 2020 - 2035

98
Jane Anson, Decanter.com, April 2018

More creamy and spicy than the Mission Haut-Brion Blanc. More rounded but also more piercing from the Sauvignon Blanc. Quite a different style, lacks the waxiness of the Mission but is more persistent and more powerful. More depth yet without the same richness as in the Mission. Drink 2022-2027

17.5
Julia Harding MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2017

Flinty and fresh both nose and palate are bright the mineral backed by citrusy freshness Grapefruit in the middle more depth of fruit white peach at the back the finish is racy fresh fruited with lovely length. Drink 2021 - 2036.

94/97
Derek Smedley MW, DerekSmedleyMW.co.uk, May 2018

This could not be a more different wine than the La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, with massive power and muscle in addition to the devastating acidity. If anything this wine looks a little daunting and almost too hard and brittle. Of course, time will tell, but it is about as commanding and intense as any young white wine (from anywhere) I have ever seen. In endeavouring to dissect it and agitate the glass in order to shake out some more tender notes there are, indeed, linden blossom and lime zest details which will emerge in time. I have feeling that this wine might out-age me, such is its elemental force and belligerence.

19+
Matthew Jukes, Matthew Jukes' Blog, April 2018
Read more tasting notes...

Composed of 56.2% Sauvignon Blanc and 43.8% Sémillon, the 2017 Blanc sashays out of the glass with gregarious notions of peach preserves, pineapple tart and orange blossoms with touches of musk perfume, candied ginger and allspice. Medium-bodied, the palate reveals a gorgeous satiny texture with amazing citrus and tropical fruit intensity and a seriously racy backbone carrying the layers to a very long, impactful finish. Give this a few more years to really flaunt its stuff, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this warrants the full three-digits. Bravo! Drink 2023-2050.

99+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (March 2020), March 2020

A tight and linear white with an energetic line of lemon-rind and lime character. Medium to full body, bright acidity and a fresh finish. 56% sauvignon blanc and 44% semillon.

94/95
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, April 2018

Composed of 56.2% Sauvignon Blanc and 43.8% Sémillon, the 2017 Blanc sashays out of the glass with gregarious notions of peach preserves, pineapple tart and orange blossoms with touches of musk perfume, candied ginger and allspice. Medium-bodied, the palate reveals a gorgeous satiny texture with amazing citrus and tropical fruit intensity and a seriously racy backbone carrying the layers to a very long, impactful finish. Give this a few more years to really flaunt its stuff, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this warrants the full three-digits. Bravo! 2023 - 2050

99+
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (March 2020), March 2020

Composed of 56.2% Sauvignon Blanc and 43.8% Sémillon, the 2017 Blanc from Haut-Brion is a little more reticent on the nose than the La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, offering up subtle pink grapefruit, green mango and ripe pears scents with an undercurrent of baking bread, ginger and allspice plus a waft of lemon peel. The palate is medium-bodied with wonderfully generous tropical and citrus flavors accented by loads of spices, finishing long and savory.

97/100
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (236), April 2018
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.