Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion Cru Classe, Pessac-Leognan 2023

A generously scented nose, very floral and perfumed, lovely high aromatics and fully expressive. Blue fruits, red cherries and some plum. Weighty and full, this really leaves a lasting impression on the palate, juicy but not too much, a tiny hint of sourness in the back gives the zing while the structure and the tannins do most of the talking, really putting the structure at the fore with a powdery, chalkiness that lingers. It’s serious, but in no way austere. Weighty but still streamlined. Chocolate, cherry and blackcurrant, feels very calm and confident, polished and sophisticated. It’s not trying too hard and feels settled in the glass. Delicious. 3.8pH. 4.4 acidity. 80 IPT. 47% grand vin production.

Drink 2034 - 2048

The classy mouth-feel and length to this is really gorgeous, and it seduces you with its texture of fine silk and finesse. Lasts for a long, long time. Medium body with medium, creamy and round tannins and a layered, textured finish. Shows blackcurrants, lead pencil and crushed stone at the end. 52.7% merlot, 29.6% cabernet sauvignon and 17.7% cabernet franc.

Zesty, focused, bright and vivid, white flowers, gorgeous texture and aromatics, pulls you forward through the palate, structured and with great ageing ability. Delicious vintage of this wine. 40% new oak. Harvest from August 21 through to September 5 for the 2.5ha of white wines. A test with shade cloths to mitigate heat spikes is underway at the estate, will be fascinating to watch the progress.

Drink 2033 - 2048

One of the finest wines in the vintage, the 2023 Château La Mission Haut-Brion is based on 52.7% Merlot, 29.6% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc. It's one hell of a gorgeous wine offering a massive nose of black raspberries, graphite, liquid flowers, scorched earth, and chocolate-like aromas and flavors. It delivers remarkable purity, full-bodied richness, no hard edges, and fine-grained, sweet tannins. The overall balance paired with opulence here is something to behold, and it’s incredible to find this level of quality in the vintage.

A blend of 52.7% Merlot, 29.6% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 17.7% Cabernet Franc, La Mission Haut-Brion 2023 has a pH of 3.7 and a deep garnet-purple color. It slowly emerges from the glass with fragrant notes of ripe plums, boysenberries, and Morello cherries, opening out to a wonderfully evocative nose of Indian spices, fragrant soil, iron ore, and rose oil. The full-bodied palate is laden with ripe, opulent black fruit and exotic spices layers, lifted by red berry accents and ferrous sparks, framed by velvety tannins and finishing with epic length.

Drink 2029 - 2050

The 2023 La Mission Haut-Brion unwinds in the glass to reveal aromas of ripe red fruits, dark wild berries, spring flowers, burning embers and lilac. Medium to full-bodied, rich and concentrated, it’s layered and textural with a dense core of fruit underpinned by youthfully firm structuring tannins. This blend of 52.7% Merlot, 29.6% Cabernet Sauvignon and 17.7% Cabernet Franc is likely to become fleshier and more enveloping with barrel maturation.

Drink 2025 - 2055

The 2023 La Mission Haut-Brion was picked between September 5 until October 5, a relatively long picking, at 50hL/ha. It has a wonderful bouquet with brightness and verve: very well-defined red and black fruit, a little floral in style, maybe not as rambunctious as recent vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with lithe tannins. A perfect line of acidity counterbalances the creamy texture, turning quite plush toward the finish, but it is amazingly well-focused. This is a generous La Mission Haut-Brion that will probably drink earlier than say, the 2022, as winemaker Jean-Philippe Delmas agreed. It’s very fine and very delicious, but I would not place it within the canon of top vintages.

Drink 2029 - 2060

The 2023 La Mission Haut-Brion is a dense, powerful wine. Firm tannins give the 2023 a feeling of sternness—a sense of classical austerity that is beguiling. This is the second-most tannic vintage for La Mission, only surpassed by 2010, so readers should plan on being patient. It will be interesting to see what élevage brings. At this stage, the 2023 is quite the bruiser. Hints of mocha, spice, new leather, crushed flowers and red-toned fruit linger.

Drink 2033 - 2063