Chateau Haut Bailly 2020

A legendary Pessac-Léognan with captivating aromas of cassis, blackberry, black cherry, graphite, cedar, cigar box, violet, and exotic spice. Exceptionally refined with silky tannins, remarkable freshness, extraordinary complexity, and one of Bordeaux's greatest aging potentials.

Food Pairing: Pair with beef Wellington, roast lamb, venison, duck breast, truffle dishes, aged Comté, or wild mushroom risotto.

100 Points - James Suckling

This has incredible power and drive with blackberry, black olive and graphite. It’s full-bodied, yet dynamic and agile, with so much polished and muscular tannin. Yet, it remains in harmony and balance. So much character. The head of the château calls it diabolical beauty. 25% less production than the 2019. 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot.

99 Points - Jeb Dunnuck

Another wine I underrated on release, the 2020 Château Haut-Bailly is just about pure perfection, and whereas the 2018 is closer in style to the 2009, this plays things a little closer to its vest and is reminiscent of the 2010. Full-bodied, concentrated, and powerful, it nevertheless cuts a focused, precise path across the palate and brings incredible purity in its darker fruits, smoked tobacco, cedar pencil, and Asian spice-driven aromas and flavors. The tannin quality here is off the charts, and this beauty has everything you could want from wine.

98 Points - Wine Enthusiast

This wine's texture is exceptional, with powerful dark fruits and rich tannins blending seamlessly. All this density is cut with the finest spice and fresh acidity. The result is a wine that has both power and delicacy that gives a lift to the aftertaste. It will certainly age so well.

97 Points - Decanter

Almost wild on the nose, aromatic and expressive, you can tell this is a powerful, concentrated wine with dark fruits, graphite, fresh mint and medicinal herbal touches. Pure and focused, clean, lean and multifaceted, the flavours hit the palate then melt away, giving the floor to liquorice, cedar, tobacco and soft clove spices. I love the sleekness and the sense of seriousness that the 2020 has compared to the more 'look at me' 2019 at this point. The texture and depth make this wine, with vertical layers and excellent acidity. A profound wine.

94 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2020 Haut-Bailly opens in the glass with attractive aromas of cassis, sweet berries, loamy soil, violets and pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's a concentrated, rather broad-shouldered wine built around a chassis of firm, powdery tannin that asserts itself on the finish. Haut-Bailly once rivaled Haut-Brion for the title of Pessac's most elegant wine, and I would love to see the team here ease off extraction, but this remains a strong effort that will reward patience. Best after 2030.