2009 Château Haut-Bailly, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2009 Haut-Bailly hits the ground running with bold black fruit preserves, Morello cherries, baked blueberries and tilled earth scents with nuances of fried herbs, chargrilled meat and a ferrous waft plus a touch of menthol. Medium to full-bodied, the taut palate has a firm, grainy texture with a lively line lifting the core of muscular fruit, finishing long and earthy.Lisa Perrotti-Brown - 14/03/2019

The 2009 Haut-Bailly has an opaque ruby/purple color, a beautiful nose of lead pencil shavings, crème de cassis, blackberry and plum, followed by an intense, super-concentrated mouthfeel that is expansive and savory, with beautifully integrated tannins and low acidity, as most wines in this vintage possess. There is still plenty of freshness and liveliness from this great terroir. The finish goes on for close to a minute and the wine, while still a young pre-adolescent in terms of its evolution, is absolutely spectacularly complex and enjoyable already. This is a 40- to 50-year wine that will probably be surpassed in its longevity by its younger sibling, the 2010. This vintage is a similar inky purple color, with subtle notes of licorice, barbecue smoke, crème de cassis, a bit more blackberry and slightly more formidable tannic structure, but again, the tannins are well-integrated and the wine constructed in a velvety, seamless (haute couture) way by Véronique Sanders. The wine coats the palate in a viscosity and richness, but there's a freshness and precision that is further indication of just how profound this wine will turn out. The wine needs another 5 to10 years and is not as "open for business" as the 2009 will probably always be, but wow, what a spectacular wine! I suspect these are the two greatest back-to-back Haut-Baillys ever made in the long, celebrated history of this small estate in Pessac-Leognan. robert_parker - erobertparker.com -Dinner at Château Haut-Bailly -June 2014 The 2009 vintage was awarded 100 points from robert_parker following a visit to the Châteauin 2014. This is a tour de force in winemaking, particularly for readers seeking the quintessential example of a Bordeaux that combines compelling complexity and finesse with significant flavor authority and intensity. Yields were extremely low in 2009, and the final blend was an intriguing concoction of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc. This terroir is known to produce relatively light wines, and by reducing yields and picking riper fruit, Wilmers and Sanders have achieved a level of concentration and intensity that is unprecedented for Haut-Bailly. robert_parker - Wine Advocate - February 2012