Chateau Haut Bailly 2009

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "I have had this wine now four separate times since I wrote my official review after bottling of the 2009s. It goes from strength to strength, and it is not surprising that it is now one of the perfect wines of this great, great vintage – the finest vintage of Bordeaux that I have tasted in 37 years covering that epicenter for world-class quality in wine. Much of it is attributable to winemaker Véronique Sanders and her boss, Robert Wilmers. Their incredibly draconian selection process and their enormous investments in both the viticulture and the estate as well as the winemaking facility have paid off brilliantly over the last decade. The 2009, which has an opaque ruby/purple color, an extraordinary nose of high-quality unsmoked cigar tobacco, graphite, blackcurrants and spice, hits the palate with a medium to full-bodied, saturated and rich mouthfeel, but an elegant and ethereal quality that is difficult to articulate. It is rich, complex and tastes as if it were the vinous equivalent of a remarkable haute couture creation from the late Coco Chanel. It is full-bodied yet elegant, powerful yet delicate, and remarkably velvety-textured, sumptuous and loaded with upside potential. It can be approached now, as most 2009s tend to be, given their richness of fruit, low acidity and extraordinary concentration, but the great complexity that will emerge from this fabulous terroir is at least a decade away, and this wine is set for 50 or more years of longevity. Kudos to Haut-Bailly!"

DECANTER: "Right from the first moment you look at this wine you can see that it remains young, concentrated and full of life. Clear smoked caramel on the nose, the texture is supremely silky and seductive, creamy in a way that sits against the taut precision of most vintages of Haut-Bailly and yet still maintaining control and poise. The aromatics are young and seductive, and the terroir has not yet fully overtaken the vintage expression, but it will do in another five or six years. A huge success. Drinking Window 2020 - 2050"

JEB DUNNUCK: "I continue to think the 2009 Château Haut-Bailly is the finest wine from this estate to date. It exemplifies the inherent elegance and finesse of this terroir while offering an incredible level of richness and depth, revealing a ruby/plum hue as well as a smorgasbord of black cherries, red currants, lavender, unsmoked tobacco, truffle, and flowery incense. Every bit as sensational on the palate, this full-bodied Haut-Bailly has a flawless, layered, multi-dimensional texture, beautiful mid-palate depth, and again, just off-the-charts elegance and finesse. It needs an hour in a decanter if drinking any time soon and has another 30 years of prime drinking ahead of it. Hats off the team of Véronique Sanders for this legendary Graves."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Deeply colored, the wine straddles the fence between its restrained, classic side and its sensuous, earthy, smoky nature. Full-bodied, concentrated and with a serious depth of flavor, the wine is all about its freshness, purity and length. Each sip wants you to take another so you can enjoy more if its smoky, tobacco enriched, earthy, pure, dark fruits on the nose and palate. The fruit is perfectly ripe, making this easy to drink. But don't let that fool you. The wine will be much better if you can wait another 7 years or so."

JAMES SUCKLING: "Aromas of blackberries, wet earth and mushrooms, follow through to a full body, with a solid core of fruit. Velvety and delicious, yet wonderfully structured. Muscular wine. Best ever?"

WEINWISSER: "Sattes Purpur-Granat. Elegantes, warm ausstrahlendes, feines Bouquet, reifer Cabernet, nussige Töne, helle Edelhölzer, frisch gerösteter Kaffee. Am Gaumen cremig, elegant und von einer delikaten Souplesse, völlig ausbalanciert, Harmonie pur ausstrahlend, im Finale Pralinen und schon recht sexy, was man von einem Haut-Bailly eigentlich nicht gewöhnt ist."

FALSTAFF: "Einladende dunkle Beerenfrucht, Brombeeren, Heidelbeerkonfit, Nougat, feine Gewürzanklänge. Kraftvoll, saftig und elegant, reife Tannine, die gut integriert sind, dunkelbeerige Frucht, mineralisch, finessenreich, feiner Bitterschokotouch im Abgang."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "Smooth and opulent, this immediately appeals with its generous fruit and texture that feels like velvet. The structure sits under the seductive surface, with a chocolate wood flavor, fruit tannins and density. Age for over 10 years at least."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Ripe and creamy on the nose with cassis notes prominent. Really quite flamboyant and seductive for Haut-Bailly. Palate complex and gourmand. Delicious fruit, plenty of stuffing but harmonious as well. Slight minerally edge. Tannins firmly present but finely honed. Lots of charm and drinkability as well."

WINE SPECTATOR: "Offers a rich, very dense feel, but stays racy thanks to a strong graphite frame around the core of roasted fig, plum sauce and maduro tobacco. Muscular but defined on the finish, with a long tarry edge in reserve. This shows serious depth and is more backward than most of its peers. Should really stretch out nicely in the cellar. Best from 2017 through 2035."