Chateau Haut-Bailly2012
RED WINE
- Producer Chateau Haut-Bailly
-
Blend
60% Cabernet Sauvignon
40% Merlot - Country France
- Region Bordeaux
- Appellation Pessac-Leognan
- UPC 0 15643 52533 9
Reviews
James Suckling 94
This red shows intense blackberries, raspberries and strawberries on the nose, following through to a full body with refined yet firm tannins, fresh acidity and a delicate finish. The purity of fruit and finesse and texture of the tannins are all fantastic.
by JS, James Suckling , 2015
Wine Enthusiast 94
Very firm and closed up, this wine is a tough proposition at the moment. It has the weight to develop well along with richness. Acidity, sweet fruits and concentrated tannins will all come through strongly as the wine matures.
by RV, Wine Enthusiast , 2015
Wine Spectator 93
Well-stuffed, with thick and muscular brambly structure that easily supports the core of macerated black currant, fig and boysenberry fruit flavors. A tarry edge coats the finish. More backwards than most of its peers at this early stage, but all the elements are in place.
by JM, Wine Spectator , 2015
Vinous Media 93
The 2012 Haut-Bailly has more charm and fruit concentration than the 2011. it offers a mixture of red and black fruit, forest floor and hints of wild mushroom. The palate is built around quite firm tannins that soften with aeration. Fleshier than expected with a subtle savoury character segueing into a peppery and quite sustained finish. This is just reaching its drinking plateau. Excellent.
by NM, Vinous Media , 2022
Wine Advocate 94
The 2012 Haut Bailly is a brilliant wine for the vintage. It has a very intense bouquet with scents of blackberry, bilberry, cedar and a touch of pencil lead. This is very well defined and focused. The palate is medium-bodied with quite firm tannin, certainly one of the most structured Pessac-Léognan wines that I have encountered, yet it is struck through with wonderful balance and focus. It tightens up a little on the finish, a 2012 built for long-term drinking pleasure, and as such, I would afford it five or six more years in bottle if wishing to experience this in full flight. Tasted March 2017.
by NM, Wine Advocate , 2017
Technical Details
Harvest
The harvest started when the phenological maturity (tannins) caught up with the technical maturity (sugar, acidity). The Merlots were picked from September 27th to October 8th, little by little in ideal conditions. The weekend of October 7th was especially hot and wet (97% hygrometry), causing us to quicken the pace and pick the Cabernets before the return of the rain. The Merlots were pleasant and full of charm. The Old Vines delivered splendid Cabernets, typical of the great terroir of Haut-Bailly. In general, the grapes were small and concentrated, bright and aromatic with excellent extractability level. They were vinified gently at low temperatures for 25 days.Vintage
The 2012 vintage plays like a foxtrot – in four defined steps...1. Following a cold dry winter, a cool, wet spring made the flowering process difficult and threatened some Merlot vines with "coulure".
2. As cool temperatures persisted until the beginning of July, we kept an extra careful eye on the vineyard and fought the onset of diseases (mildiou, oïdium). The team remained on hand throughout the summer to carry out leaf thinning and other early work. A protracted and uneven "veraison" period forced us to complete a second green harvest in order to eliminate unripe bunches.
3. The month of August had the advantage of wide temperature ranges with hot days; as sunny as in 2000 or 2009, with highs of 39 Celsius during the second fortnight, and cool nights. All which favour the synthesis of anthocyanin. Traditional tilling of the soil allowed better management of hydric stress from mid-August onwards, as the continued good condition of the leaves testified.
4. At the end of a summer-like month of September, a few millimeters of rain on September 25th and 26th helped to re-kindle the ripening of the grapes, which led to the sublimation of the fruity character of the skins and the softness of the tannins.