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Although by all accounts the vine has been rampant in these parts since at least Roman times, the earliest written mention that our archivist has discovered, citing a parcel of vines being cultivated at Haut-Brion dates back to only 1423.
In the early days wines were known by the name of the parishes from whence they came. Later they became known as clarets. In the case of Haut-Brion, under the great stewardship of the Pontac family the wine's reputation was for years represented by the name of this enlightened and well respected family-- Pontac wine.
Eventually as its renown grew, the name of the Estate came to replace that of its owners. The notion of a Great Growth was born! We find the first written mention of the wine in the Diaries of Samuel Pepys. While visiting the Royal Oak Tavern in London on April 10, 1663 Pepys wrote "There I drank a sort of French wine called Ho-Bryan (sic) which hath a good and most particular taste which I never before encountered....."
In 1923 after many problems (through several ownerships) Haut-Brion was taken over by the Banque d'Algérie. They in turn passed it on as "a golden handshake" to André Gibert. He was an eccentric character with a partiality for law suits and singular experiments in wine-making. He refused to sell through the Bordeaux trade. In 1934, old, childless and ill, he offered to give the château to the city of Bordeaux in exchange for a promise that they would preserve it forever. When the city turned him down Gibert, after months of negotiations, sold Haut-Brion to the Dillon Family.
The Dillon Family restored to Château Haut-Brion its well- founded prestige. The Dillons brought back the tradition and pride of family ownership historically attached to Haut-Brion. Introducing select advances in technology to the vineyards, they have opened the door for continuation of the great tradition of Haut-Brion into the Twenty-first century.
The Dillon Family was presented with the prestigious Pilier d'Or of the French Institute/Alliance Française by His Excellency Mr. François Bujon de l'Estang, the Ambassador of France to the United States and Mr. John H.F. Haskell, Jr., Président, French Institute/Alliance Française on November 9th, 1998 at The Pierre in New York.
The Pilier d'Or was established to honor those people who have had a lasting impact on the development of the French Institute/ Alliance Française and who have fostered the appreciation of French and American culture throughout their lives. The Dillon Family, which is headed today by C. Douglas Dillon, former U.S. Ambassador to France, has played a prominent role in the French Institute/Alliance Française's history since the 1920s.
  
Facts & Figures
Area under vine
43 hectares
Production
120,000 to 170,000 bottles of Chateau Haut-Brion
8,000 to 10,000 bottles of Chateau Haut-Brion Blanc
Soil
Gravel soil with a subsoil of clay and sand
Blend and aging for Chateau Haut-Brion
At Château Haut-Brion, most of the wine is put in new barrels for a period of 20 to 24 months. This use of new barrels goes back to the beginning of the 18th Century -- when it was learned that old, poorly cared-for casks would spoil the new wine.
Grape varieties
45% Cabernet Sauvignon
37% Merlot
18% Cabernet Franc
Average age of the vines
36 years
Chateau Haut-Brion Blanc
The unctuousness, the suavity and the apparent softness of the Sémillon are associated with the fruity freshness of the ripe Sauvignon. Thus Château Haut-Brion Blanc achieves the dream of the Larrieus: the aromatic fullness of a sauternes present in a dry white wine...
Grape varieties
63% Semillon
37% Sauvignon Blanc
Average age of the vines
27 years
  
Wines available
All wines sold by BDXV come direct from Bordeaux and have been stored at the Chateaux or in professional storage facilities since the time of bottling. BDXV’s wines have never ever been in the hands of private collectors. This gives you the customer the highest level of quality guarantee that the wines you buy have been stored in optimal conditions since the time they were bottled.
Chateau Haut Brion 2005, EUR POA*
Score: 98 points. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2040.
Robert Parker: 98 points
April 2008: Another profound effort from Haut-Brion, the 2005 (a 9,000-case blend of 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc) has bulked up to the point that it is fair to compare it to the great successes of 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1998, and 2000. A dark ruby/purple color is followed by a nuanced, noble bouquet of blue and red fruits interwoven with wet stones, unsmoked cigar tobacco, scorched earth, and spring flowers. The wine is full-bodied, pure, and complex as well as exceptionally elegant with laser-like precision. The tannins are still serious and substantial, and in that sense, this is a completely different style of Haut-Brion than the opulent, silky-textured 1989 and 1990. As I have written before, it comes across as an improved, more concentrated and structured version of the 1995 or 1998. Patience will be required for this stunner.
April 2007: The 2005 Haut-Brion is another wine that has put on weight over the last year. While I still believe the 1989 is the great classic, it is difficult not to admire the architectural structure and seriousness of this extraordinarily elegant effort. A blend of 56% Cabernet Sauvignon (which came in around 14% natural alcohol), 39% Merlot (over 13% natural alcohol), and 5% Cabernet Franc, only 9,000 cases were produced in this vintage, significantly less than in other great years such as 2000 or 1998. It appears to be a big, bulked-up version of the 1996 or 1995. While almost primordial in its denseness, richness, and body, it retains its elegance and surreal nose of flowers, cherries, pain grille, crushed rocks, flowers, and ripe fruit. Powerful, dense, and in need of a decade of cellaring, this will be a 30 to 40-year Haut-Brion that should end up being a modern day version of the 1955. Although closed at present, it is enormously impressive, and is a treat to taste next to the more flamboyant La Mission Haut-Brion.
April 2006: The 2005 Haut-Brion is an extraordinarily broad, rich, full-bodied effort boasting huge aromas of scorched earth, plum sauce, sweet cherries, black currants, and a hint of toasty oak. The wine possesses huge tannins, which is somewhat deceptive given its viscosity and opulence. Despite its intensity, Haut-Brion is always a model of elegance and symmetry. The profound 2005, which will undoubtedly shut down after bottling, should be less seductive in its youth than either the 1989 or 1990, but it will be incredibly long-lived.
Jancis Robinson: 19.5 points
56% M 39% CS, 5% CF (45% grand vin). Very very dark crimson with maroon rim. Truly great, very savoury, appetising absolutely classic, true Haut-Brion scents of minerals as a grace note on extraordinary ripeness without fatness. Bravissimo! What delicacy with power! There is masses and masses dug in underneath here – weight and tannin and dryness on the finish but it’s all covered with a fine cashmere blanket. A tiny bit of heat on the end? Extraordinary fan of flavours. Great lift and precision and then length. Absolutely no sweetness – what a contrast to many of yesterday’s St-Emilions! You wouldn’t think they were at all in the same region…
Chateau Haut Brion 2000, EUR POA*
Score: 98 points. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2040.
Robert Parker: 98 points
It will always be tempting to compare the 2000 Haut-Brion with the perfect 2000 La Mission Haut-Brion. However, it is not as fat, unctuous, flamboyant, or voluminous as La Mission. Yet, like a great diplomat, it is a wine of intensity, authority, and measured restraint. A supremely elegant offering, its dense ruby/purple color, and burgeoning perfume of scorched earth, liquid minerals, plums, black currants, cherries, lead pencil, and subtle spicy oak are followed by a delicate yet powerfully flavorful, multi-layered, highly nuanced, and extraordinarily pure and seamless wine. There have been so many recent classics from Haut-Brion, it is premature to suggest the 2000 is better than the 1998, 1995, 1990, or 1989, but it is certainly a prodigious wine of dazzling persistence, length, and complexity. A blend of 51% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 7% Cabernet Franc, it should prove to be uncommonly long-lived, even by the standards of Haut-Brion.
Jancis Robinson: 18.5 points
Mid ruby. Biscuity. Interesting. Round. Mellow. Very exciting, too. Lots of vibrancy and layers with a neat end. Lovely wine.
Chateau Haut Brion 1995, EUR POA*
Score: 96 points. Anticipated maturity: 2000-2030.
Robert Parker: 96 points
This wine has been brilliant on every occasion I have tasted it. More accessible and forward than the 1996, it possesses a saturated ruby/purple color, as well as a beautiful, knock-out set of aromatics, consisting of black fruits, vanillin, spice, and wood-fire smoke. Multidimensional and rich, with layers of ripe fruit, and beautifully integrated tannin and acidity, this medium to full-bodied wine is a graceful, seamless, exceptional Haut-Brion that should drink surprisingly well young.
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