2018 CHÂTEAU HAUT BAGES LIBÉRAL 5ème Cru Classé Pauillac

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Colour	Red	Origin	France, Bordeaux
Sub-district	Haut Médoc	Village	Pauillac
Classification	5ème Cru Classé	ABV	13.5%

Colour	Red
Origin	France, Bordeaux
Sub-district	Haut Médoc
Village	Pauillac
Classification	5ème Cru Classé
ABV	13.5%

79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot. From biodynamically grown grapes but not yet fully certified. This is one of the best Haut Bages Libéral we can remember tasting en primeur. There's a deep core of very pure bramble and blackcurrent fruit. The tannins are supremely fine and beautifully integrated and there is a line of mineral freshness running through it that hints at this estate's illustrious southerly neighbour. A really superb Pauillac from Claire Villars Lurton and the team. Chapeau! Drinking range: 2025 - 2045 L&S (Apr 2019)

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The 2018 Haut-Bages Libéral is super-impressive right out of the gate. It shows all the depth and intensity I saw from barrel, with maybe a bit more tannic impact. Ripe red cherry, plum, orange peel, cedar and sweet spice all build in the glass. The 2018 is going to need a few years to come into its own, but it is a gorgeous Pauillac. Drinking range: 2026 - 2043 Rating: 94 Antonio Galloni, www.vinous.com (Mar 2021)

Pretty blackberries, blueberries and violets with some crushed-raspberry aromas follow through to a full body with wonderfully crafted and pure tannins that intertwine wonderfully with the blue fruit and blackberries. Long and endless. A triumph here. From biodynamically grown grapes. Try after 2026. Rating: 97 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Feb 2021)

The 2018 Haut-Bages Libéral, which was tasted directly from barrel at the property, was picked at 50hl/ha from September 17 to around October 10. There is about 60mg of SO2 in this wine. It has a delightful bouquet of blackberry, boysenberry and light pencil box aromas that show engaging purity. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly chalky tannin, the acidity very well-judged and the 40% new oak nicely integrated. There is a boldness to this Pauillac that I like and that perhaps has not been evident in previous vintages. The solid finish displays fine density. This is definitely worth checking out. Drinking range: 2023 - 2045 Rating: 91-93 Neal Martin, www.vinous.com (Nov 2019)

Château Haut Bages Libéral

Pauillac Cinquième cru 1855 Château Haut Bages Libéral sits nearly atop the hill to the south of the hamlet of Bages - hence the name, Haut Bages - seperated by a country lane from Château Latour. The estate was owned by the Libéral family during the 18th Century, hence the last part of the name. Despite being surrounded by illustious neighbours - aside from Latour to the immediate south, Haut Bages Libéral can also count the two Pichons as "next door" - achieving 5th Growth status in 1855 seems to have been a bit of a high point as a century of typically Bordelais decline followed. In 1960 the Cruse family took control and, apart from cleaving off a portion of vineyards and handing them over to Château Pontet-Canet, the fortunes of Haut Bages Libéral began to improve. The Cruse family were forced to sell in 1982 and Château Haut Bages Libéral became part of the Merlaut family's Taillan Group, which includes Chasse Spleen and Gruaud Larose. The 28ha of vineyard are planted to 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 3% Petit Verdot. The wine is fermented in stainless steel before spending 16 months in wood (40% new). Whilst not living up to the greatest heights of its neighbour Latour, Haut Bages Libéral offers some very good value for a really well-made Pauillac.

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2009 CHÂTEAU PONTET CANET 5ème Cru Classé Pauillac

Left Bank Bordeaux France 13.5% Red
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A deep purple-edged black. First scent is incredibly appetising, like blackberry and apple pie. Full and sweet, and also an intense, pointed cassis fruit. Thick dry attack - an amazing combination of freshness of concent...(read more)

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