| Region | |
|---|---|
| Subregion | France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Pessac-Léognan |
| Colour | White |
| Type | Still |
The rare dry white wine from La Mission Haut Brion is made by the same team as Haut Brion Blanc. It used to be known as Laville Haut Brion but changed its name in 2009. The 2.5 hectare vineyard produces around 500 dozen bottles annually. There is more Semillon planted here than Sauvignon Blanc (the opposite of Haut Brion Blanc).
The 2017 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc is a blend of 76.2% Semillon and 23.8% Sauvignon Blanc. The nose is very closed, eventually opening out to reveal notes of apple tart, fresh Bosc pears, and honey-drizzled white peaches with wafts of lime blossom and sea spray. The medium-bodied palate is tightly wound with fantastic energy and tension, delivering a long, mineral-laced finish.
The 2017 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc was picked 22 to 31 August. It has a well defined bouquet with honeysuckle, jasmine and light orange blossom scents. The palate is very well balanced with lime, orange zest and a saline undertow. Moderate length with an attractive waxy texture and a resinous, slightly nutty aftertaste. This is another excellent white from the Clarence Dillon stable, though the Haut-Brion Blanc just has the edge. Drink 2023-2050.
This is really layered yet tight and focused with searing minerality that gives it tension and energy. Full-bodied, bright and precise. Impressive. 76% semillon and 24% sauvignon blanc.
For me this is the wine of the vintage. Both of the whites in the Haut-Brion stable are exceptionally well sculpted and finessed, but this has the aromatic edge. It has a powerful, intense concentration of flavours, hemmed in by slate walls that make you slow down and inch your way through the palate - and I am more than happy to go as slow as possible. The cool nights over the summer have been very kind to these grapes; they are in full control, with luscious, creamy citrus, passion fruit, nectarine, white pear and touches of lemongrass. It's persistent and mouthwatering, an absolute testament to what white Bordeaux can achieve. 40% new oak. 98-100 points.
Drinking Window 2020 - 2035
Simple lemon and lime fruit on the nose. Piercing, precise and fresh but a light creamy texture and all quite primary though you have the weight and richness of the Sémillon balanced by the crisp Sauvignon Blanc, opening to a waxy richness. Very long.
Drink 2021-2027
Picked from the 22nd to the 31st August, the blend is 76% Semillon, 24% Sauvignon Blanc. Beeswax, lanolin and rich peachy notes on the nose here, this is showing a fuller style of Semillon. The palate is spicy and full, with white pepper, pineapple and tangerine. Sweet smoke from the new oak is powerful but in harmony with the ripe and full core of stone and tropical fruits. The texture is round, rich and supple, just tamed and refreshed by vibrant acidity. The finish is long, with lively acidity turning the notes to citrus blossom and struck flint. Very well measured.
Crisp with citrus on nose and the start of the palate broader richer in the middle ripe pears the rich fruit balanced and underpinned by cut apple the finish has fresh fruits and length. 2021-36
Very strict and very firm, this is a spectacular wine with incredible tension and drive. The Semillon is back to being the dominant variety (after last year’s anomalous reversal of the blend) and this has brought a strictness and severity to the wine. Thrilling and closed with nail-biting tension, this is a wine which will have a very long life ahead of it. The sour lemon and white flower notes are exquisite. It is interesting in this vintage that the characters of each of the wines is so heightened and individual. It is as if they have been forced to exercise their own identity like never before and they have risen to this challenge.
A blend of 23.8% Sauvignon Blanc and 76.2% Sémillon, the 2017 Blanc takes its time uncoiling from its tightly wound state, slowly revealing nuances of lemon tart, lime blossoms, green mango and jasmine with touches of cedar chest and sea spray. Medium-bodied, the palate has a beautifully expressed, quiet intensity, featuring loads of subtle mineral and citrus layers, finishing long and chalky. Beautiful. 2023 - 2045
The 2017 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc was picked 22 to 31 August and matured in 38% new oak. It is very precise on the nose with lovely scents of orange blossom, Cornice pear, nettle and yellow flowers. The palate is well balanced with a slight waxiness on the entry. There is an underlying resinous quality to this La Mission Blanc with citrus lemon, Granny Smith apples, stem ginger and tangible mineralité towards the finish. This is a classy, sophisticated La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, one that is surpassed by the nascent Haut-Brion Blanc at the moment, but may have a trick up its sleeve with age thanks to the high proportion of Sémillon. 2022 - 2045
Blended of 76.2% Sémillon and 23.8% Sauvignon Blanc, the 2017 Blanc gives up seriously intense notes of jasmine, grapefruit, lime zest and yuzu with touches of crushed rocks and lemongrass. The palate is medium-bodied with electric intensity and incredible tension, finishing long with many citrus fruit and mineral layers.
