Tasting Notes
JancisRobinson.com 17+
70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot. Very fine and classic in style. Dark fruits with a fresh, minerally tone (highest percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon among the vintages 1998-2017 tasted). Great sense of length and drive, the palate linear and focused. Adequate fruit and the tannins are finely etched. Lovely unforced style. Balanced finish. (JL)
Anticipated maturity: 2016-2035
Vinous 93
The 2008 Haut Bailly has long been one of the knockout wines of the vintage. Now at ten years of age it retains its youthful appearance. It has a stunning bouquet with billowing, pure blackberry and bilberry fruit tinged with brine and iodine, very well defined and one of the most intense you will find in 2008. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin. This feels lithe and silky smooth in the mouth: intense black fruit, a splash soy and a more structured finish. Just superb. (Tasted at the chateau and at BI Wine & Spirit s annual vertical tasting.)
Anticipated maturity: 2018-2040
Robert Parker 93
Tasted ex-chateau and single blind in Southwold. Initially, the Haut-Bailly 2008 lacks a little intensity on the nose, especially after the previous wine. But it is well defined with fine minerality coming through with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a little hardness with a slightly abrasive, masculine finish that should mellow with age. Impressive. Tasted January 2012.
