CHÂTEAU LA MISSION HAUT BRION BLANC
2014 Cru Classé Pessac-Léognan
Beautiful nose of sweet vanilla and lovely fresh buttered toast. On the palate is an irresistible feel and taste of Tarte au Citron - creamy soft lemon juice and crisp biscuit pastry - delicious, polished wine made from a whopping 72% Semillon which is succulent and so moreish. Rating: 96 L&S (Apr 2015)
* This is a pre-shipment/primeur offer. All orders are accepted under the TERMS of this offer which differ from the terms of the rest of the site.
The 2014 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc does not quite possess the same clinical delineation of some of the best dry whites in the flight. But it seems to address that with aeration and offers some lovely lemon rind, grapefruit and chalk scents. The palate is well balanced, underpinned by a fine line of acidity, quite brisk and taut with a persistent finish. Excellent. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. Drinking range: 2020 - 2040 Rating: 93 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Mar 2018)
The Château La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc 2014 is a blend of 28% Sauvignon Blanc and 72% Sémillon. It has a well-defined bouquet with lime flower and fresh pear scents that gain intensity in the glass, though never quite achieves the ethereal heights of the "gaff across the road". The palate is fresh with again a keen, fresh line of acidity than Jean-Philippe Delmas remarked is broadly in line with 2011. This is very tense at the moment, sharp and edgy, you could almost say “electric” on the finish that will stand it in good stead by the time of bottling. Drinking range: 2018 - 2035 Rating: 92-94 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (May 2015)
Gorgeous and savoury. A complex array of citrus and stone fruits, with fresh lemon then lemon curd richness; the 72% Semillon (higher than normal) really shows. Beautiful minerality with savoury herbs, lifting stone fruits; firm and elegant. Impressive, clever winemaking, showing great acidity and length. (Outstanding Pessac-Léognan.) Drinking range: 2019 - 2030 Rating: 95+ Steven Spurrier (Apr 2015)
The 2014 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc is bright and finely cut in style. Lime peel, white flowers, mint and crushed rocks open up in a wine marked by tons of pure drive. The flavors literally bristle in the glass with brilliant energy. The blend is 72% Sémillon and 28% Sauvignon. Rating: 90-93 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Apr 2015)
Mid greenish gold. Low-key nose and then lovely broad fat fruit with beeswax. Some richness and really vibrant on the nose. Pretty embryonic. Drinking range: 2020 - 2030 Rating: 17.5+ Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2015)
Rich fruit ripe fruit the nose has depth of flavour but the start of the palate has lime apple freshness lovely and bright. Richer on the mid palate peachy tropical fruits all nicely balanced by the citrus that comes through on the back palate. Drinking range: 2017 - 2026 Rating: 92-95 Derek Smedley MW, www.dereksmedleymw.co.uk (Apr 2015)
In a good year for dry whites, this is the outstanding example for me. Unlike most of the great white Bordeaux, it is Semillon based, with 28 percent Sauvignon Blanc adding acidity and bite. Smoky, herbal, waxy, toasty and very complex. (One of Tim's Top 10 Dry Whites.) Drinking range: 2015 - 2030 Rating: 97 Tim Atkin MW, www.timatkin.com (Apr 2015)
This is a big and powerful white with so much richness and excitement. It’s almost New World in character. Full-bodied, layered and juicy. Characters of dried pineapples, apples, apricots, lemons and then a touch of stones. Rating: 95-96 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Mar 2015)
Château la Mission Haut Brion
Surrounded by the urban sprawl of Bordeaux, facing each other across the street are Châteaus Haut Brion and La Mission Haut Brion. In the 16th Century Arnaut de Roustaing, who had bought what is today La Mission, married Marie de Pontac, sister of Haut Brion owner Jean de Pontac, but, despite being immediate neighbours, this is as close as the two estates got to common history until the modern era. The "Haut Brion" portion of the name appears to, simply, to be a little commercial plagiarisation of the sort that Haut Brion has suffered more than most. Arnaut's grand-daughter left the estate to the Congregation of the Mission in 1654, who built a small chapel in the vineyards called Notre Dame de la Mission. Church ownership seems to have been good for La Mission Haut Brion and the fame of the wines grew. Cardinal Richelieu appears to have been a fan. But Chuch ownership could not survive the French Revolution and the various private owners that followed oversaw a fall in quality and reputation. The modern history, and revival of La Mission Haut Brion, dates from 1919 when Frédéric Woltner bought the estate. Together with his sons, he revitalised La Mission, installing the, then, cutting edge technology of temperature-controlled fermentation and restructuring the vineyards. The next generation of Woltners, however, fell into discord and sold La Mission Haut Brion to Domaine Clarence Dillon SA, owners of Château Haut Brion in 1983, bringing the two neighbours under the same ownership. Since then, La Mission Haut Brion has grown considerably in reputation and ranks among the best château, not only in Pessac-Léognan, but in Bordeaux as a whole. There are 21ha of vines, planted to 45% each of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with the balance being Cabernet Franc. Red wines are aged in 100% new oak for just under 2 years. If remembering the differences between Haut Brion proper and La Mission Haut Brion wasn't enough, the two estates are also responsible for a confusing array of other "Haut Brions". The Woltner family were bequeathed Château La Tour Haut Brion in 1933 and this was produced as seperate wine by La Mission until the 2005 vintage, since when the grapes from La Tour Haut Brion have been used in the blend for La Chapelle de la Mission Haut Brion, La Mission's second wine. The Woltners also purchased the near-by property of Château Laville Haut Brion and produced a very successful white wine there. This has now been re-named Château la Mission Haut Brion Blanc. Châteaus Haut Brion and La Mission Haut Brion also produce a joint white second wine called La Clarté de Haut Brion.
Please make sure that you have read the terms of this offer which are different from those of the main website. If you are unclear as to what is involved in primeur purchases please do call us, but see the 'practical notes' below.
Ordering
Prices are per case as listed 'in bond London'.
Pre-Orders are a firm commitment from you to buy the wines you order on release, subject to the price being below the upper price of the estimated band on our website. You may also set your own upper price limit, lower or higher than ours. Pre-orders will be fulfilled subject to availability. Providing this firm commitment to us effectively gives you priority.
Wines listed on the website (after any pre-orders and allocations have been fulfilled) can be ordered in the usual way via the website order form or by email or telephone 020 7221 1982, always subject to stock remaining.
Confirmation
All orders will be confirmed by email and are contractually binding unless written cancellation is received within seven days of the confirmation date, apart from pre-orders which are binding if the release price is below the top estimate or other price you have set.
Invoices are raised at the In Bond price, excluding any duty and VAT which will become payable at the prevailing rates on arrival of the wine if required duty paid.
Payment is required on sight of invoice, by cash, cheque, debit card or credit transfer. We reserve the right to charge 2% per month on invoices unpaid after 30 days.
Delivery
- Shipment to our bond (LCB Creek Road) and insurance are included in the in bond price.
- Delivery is free to Lea and Sandeman / Elephant storage accounts, both duty paid and in bond.
- Other deliveries (In Bond and Duty Paid) are also free subject to a minimum order from the offer of £1000, orders below this total will be charged £16.50+ VAT when the wine invoices are issued. We will group deliveries and this is a charge for your entire purchases, not a per-case charge.
- Delivery for 2016 Bordeaux primeurs will probably be completed by October 2019, but we make no guarantee as to specific delivery times, and some of the Sauternes may be later.
Practical notes - how it works
We start a sale in each customer's name and add all their primeur orders to one sale which is invoiced at the end of the campaign (or when the customer wishes) for immediate payment. We and our customers find that having a single invoice for the vintage is the simpler option, but do please note that confirmed orders are still binding as above even if the final invoice has not been issued.
When the wine is shipped, unless previously specified we will assume that delivery is to be to bonded storage with Elephant Storage, but in any case, we will contact you requesting any alternative instructions. If you have another bonded delivery address you would like the wine to go to, please tell us at the time of ordering. If the wines are required duty-paid we will issue invoices at the rates prevailing at the time for the excise duty (currently £25.98 per case) and the VAT (currently at 20%) on the total of the wine cost and the duty.
Half-bottles, Magnums and larger bottles.
One of the additional advantages of buying en primeur is being able to order the wine in the bottle size you want. Even if a wine is only listed in one size, you can order any bottle or case size you want if the property supplies it, but you must order the case/bottle size you require and check that the correct size has been invoiced.
Additional charges are as follows:-
- +£15 per case of 24 half-bottles
- +£15 per case of 6 Magnums (2 bottles equivalent, 1.5 litres each)
- +£35 per individually boxed Double Magnum (4 bottles equivalent, 3 litres)
- +£45 per individually boxed Imperial (8 bottles equivalent, 6 litres) for Salmanazars, Balthazars, Nebuchadnezzars and Melchiors please enquire for availability and price.