1983 | Château Haut-Brion | Pessac-Leognan

Notes of cassis and blackberry fruit subsumed in a swirl of singed tobacco, barnyard, smoke, Graves earth, herbs and a touch of oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite shut down, with fine mid-palate depth, still a bit of well-integrated tannin to resolve, and fine length, if not a lot of generosity on the finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: Tasted at lunch at La Trompette. I have always had a soft spot for the Haut-Brion 1983 as one of the 'friendliest' of the First Growths. Though not a top-tier Haut-Brion, the 1983 has developed a fine earthy, leathery bouquet that is similar to the ’86 but without the same vigour or complexity. The palate is very harmonious with a citrus-tinged entry, its lack of depth and length compensated by poise and tension. Sandalwood, cedar and a touch of truffle and smoke towards the finish.

• John Gilman: The ’83 Haut Brion had a rather long adolescent stage of funkiness, but I had felt it had moved on from that more than a decade ago, only to cross paths with another recalcitrant bottle most recently. Aromatically this bottle was very closed and “horsy”, with reluctant notes of cassis and blackberry fruit subsumed in a swirl of singed tobacco, barnyard, smoke, Graves earth, herbs and a touch of oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite shut down, with fine mid-palate depth, still a bit of well-integrated tannin to resolve, and fine length, if not a lot of generosity on the finish. I have always been a fan of the ’83 HB, and crossing paths with a much more closed than usual bottle certainly does not dissuade me of its ultimate quality. Typically, this wine is much nearer its plateau of maturity, but this one was none the worse for its bit of youthful closure.

Producer Information

Château Haut-Brion is the oldest of Bordeaux's five first growths, and one of the most famous wines in the world. Located in Pessac-Léognan, south of the city of Bordeaux, the château is rather far removed from its counterparts, all of which are found in the Médoc. Lafite Rothschild, Mouton Rothschild and Latour are all in Pauillac, while Château Margaux is – unsurprisingly – in Margaux. The property is in the northern Graves on the outskirts of Bordeaux, and is now surrounded by encroaching buildings and roads. It is also flanked by La Mission Haut-Brion, which was bought by Haut-Brion's owners in the early 1980s. The majority of the estate's 51 hectares (126 acres) of vineyard is planted to red varieties with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot covering 48 hectares (118 acres) while three hectares (7.5 acres) are given over to Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon. The Haut-Brion cuvée tends to have more Merlot than the wines from the Medoc, with Cabernet Sauvignon in more of a supporting role (this is reflected in the vineyard). As such, Haut-Brion is more rounded and softer than other Left Bank wines. The château describes the wine as having an empyreumatic (charred organic matter) bouquet. The château's second wine has been known as La Clarence de Haut-Brion since 2007.

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