Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Tasted at a vertical tasting at the chateau. The 2008 Haut Batailley is service back to normal after the rather lacklustre 2007. It has a well defined, blackberry, minerally nose that has a sense of brightness and vivacity—a vivid set of aromatics that entice you inwards. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, crisp and focused with great tension and energy. I appreciate the purity embroidered into this wine from start to finish, the manner in which it gently fans out towards the long and precise finish. Excellent for the vintage, this is probably very good value in today's market. Tasted July 2016.
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Wine Spectator
Perfumed and fresh on the nose, with hints of cherry and currant. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins and a clean, fresh finish.
Barrel Sample: 87-90 Points
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
The leader on the Left Bank in number of first growth classified producers within its boundaries, Pauillac has more than any of the other appellations, at three of the five. Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Mouton Rothschild border St. Estephe on its northern end and Chateau Latour is at Pauillac’s southern end, bordering St. Julien.
While the first growths are certainly some of the better producers of the Left Bank, today they often compete with some of the “lower ranked” producers (second, third, fourth, fifth growth) in quality and value. The Left Bank of Bordeaux subscribes to an arguably outdated method of classification that goes back to 1855. The finest chateaux in that year were judged on the basis of reputation and trading price; changes in rank since then have been miniscule at best. Today producers such as Chateau Pontet-Canet, Chateau Grand Puy-Lacoste, Chateau Lynch-Bages, among others (all fifth growth) offer some of the most outstanding wines in all of Bordeaux.
Defining characteristics of fine wines from Pauillac (i.e. Cabernet-based Bordeaux Blends) include inky and juicy blackcurrant, cedar or cigar box and plush or chalky tannins.
Layers of gravel in the Pauillac region are key to its wines’ character and quality. The layers offer excellent drainage in the relatively flat topography of the region allowing water to run off into “jalles” or streams, which subsequently flow off into the Gironde.