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2020 Château La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

  • White
  • Dry
  • Full Bodied
Not ready
Jancis Robinson MW
17+/20
Michael Schuster
92-93/100
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW
95-97/100
James Suckling
98-99/100
Neal Martin MW
93-95/100
Antonio Galloni
94-96/100
Jane Anson MW
95/100
Product: 20201017311
2020 Château La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux
Colour White
Sweetness Dry
Vintage 2020
Maturity Not ready
Body Full Bodied
Producer Château La Mission-Haut-Brion

Critics reviews

Jancis Robinson MW 17+/20
Cask sample taken 13 April. 54.7% Sauvignon Blanc, 45.3% Sémillon picked 19 to 28 August. Estimated alcohol 13.8%. Very pale, low-key nose. Edgy and pungent with real freshness (more than Haut-Brion Blanc?). Sleek and dense with a certain smokiness and drive, but still pretty embryonic. Much less flashy and rich than this wine used to be. This promises well.Drink 2024 - 2037jancis_robinson_mw MW, JancisRobinson.com (April 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com (Apr 2021)
Michael Schuster 92-93/100
Pale, cloudy; discreet nose, delicately ripe Sauvignon, but lacking a little Sauvignon Blanc vitality; full, broad, supple wine, with a moderate supporting acidity; dry, ample, mouthfilling, with a gentle raciness, a touch of warmth, and subtle oak-cedar aromas, and with fine aromatic length. But this is just lacking a bit in the excitement, scope, and definition it usually has. Refined and very attractive, of course, but not grand. Probably better drunk earlier rather than later.Drink 2025 - 2035Michael Schuster, The World of Fine Wine (May 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
Michael Schuster, TheWorldOfFineWine.com (May 2021)
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW 95-97/100
The 2020 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc is a blend of 54.7% Sauvignon Blanc and 45.3% Semillon, harvested 19th to 28th August, with an estimated alcohol of 13.8%. The nose tingles with electric notes of lemon zest, orange blossoms and pink grapefruit, followed by hints of fresh ginger, elderflowers and crushed rocks, plus a waft of lime leaves. The medium-bodied palate quivers with intense, tightly wound citrus fruit layers, backed up by a racy backbone and finishing long and steely.Drink 2023 - 2039Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (May 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, RobertParker.com (May 2021)
James Suckling 98-99/100
A vivid, really bright La Mission, showing strength and finesse at the same time. Honeysuckle, lime, lemon and other citrus fruit with stone and mineral undertones. 55% sauvignon and 45% semillon.james_suckling, jamessuckling_com (April 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (Apr 2021)
Neal Martin MW 93-95/100
The 2020 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc has an intense nose of white flowers, Conference pear, broom and almost basalt-like aromas. It demands an hour to really show what it can do – nothing new there. The palate is beautifully balanced with fine acidity, delivering grapefruit, passion fruit, touches of sour lemon and an underlying salinity that upholds the requisite tension on the finish.Very assured and classy, though perhaps the growing season denied it a soupçon of mineralité that would have elevated it to a bona fide great La Mission Blanc. As usual, it will require cellaring and ample decanting.Drink 2028 - 2055Neil Martin, Vinous.com.com (May 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
Neal Martin MW, Vinous.com (May 2021)
Antonio Galloni 94-96/100
The 2020 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc is pure seduction. Creamy and layered in the glass, the 2020 is elegance personified. Hints of spice and white flowers lead into apricot, white peach, mint and sage, all beautifully knit together. The 2020 balances freshness with textural intensity so sell. It's an absolutely gorgeous wine.Drink 2030 - 2050antonio_galloni, Vinous.com.com (June 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (Jun 2021)
Jane Anson MW 95/100
Fragrant white flowers, touches of lime blossom and slate-filled citrus. The acidity is fresh, but this is more about texture, and it is extremely successful. Harvest from 19th to 28th August. The minerality, together with freshly cut rosemary and sage notes, is accentuated as it opens, which is an excellent indicator of how well this wine will age. Deft winemaking, as ever, proving why this is one of Bordeaux's best loved white wines. Tasted twice.Drink 2022 - 2032jane_anson_mw, Decanter.com (April 2021)
Drink 2024 - 2037
Jane Anson MW, Decanter.com (Apr 2021)

About this wine

Chateau la Mission Haut-Brion

Château La Mission-Haut-Brion is the greatest Graves wine after Haut-Brion and in some vintages is considered the superior wine of the two. La Mission-Haut-Brion is situated just across the road from Haut-Brion in the commune of Talence in the southern suburbs of Bordeaux. Since 1983, both properties have been under the same ownership, Domaine Clarence Dillon S.A. La Mission-Haut-Brion's vineyards (Cabernet Sauvignon 48%, Merlot 45%, Cabernet Franc 7%) lie on a large (up to 18 metres deep in places) gravel bank interspersed with clay. The wine is fermented in temperature-controlled, stainless steel vats and then matured in oak barriques (100% new) for 18 months. The wines of La Mission Haut Brion are rich, oaky and powerful and need at least 10 years of bottle ageing before they should be broached.
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