Chateau Haut-Brion, Blanc, Pessac-Leognan 2012

A prodigious blend of 55% Sauvignon Blanc and 45% Semillon, the 2012 Haut-Brion blanc is the Montrachet of Bordeaux. Incredible notes of crushed rocks, spring flowers, lemon butter, tangerine oil, honeysuckle and candle wax soar from the glass of this full-bodied white. It totally hides any evidence of being aged in 100% new oak. Sadly, there are fewer than 800 cases of this fabulous Pessac-Leognan. It should age well for a half century. Bravo!

Tasted blind at the Southwold 2012 tasting. The 2012 Haut-Brion Blanc has an entrancing bouquet of honeysuckle, fresh pear and greengage that is beautifully defined and seamlessly enmeshed with the oak. The palate is well balanced with just a patina of new oak, smooth and harmonious, fine minerality here with a spicy finish that leaves the tongue tingling. This is very well crafted and it will just get better and better. Yes, my drinking window does advise ten years in bottle, since in my experience only this and the late Laville Haut-Brion age so magnificently. Therefore, that score may well rise in the future if I am ever afforded a chance to re-taste this superb white Bordeaux. Tasted January 2016.