1979 La Mission Haut Brion
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Tasting notes
The 1979 La Mission Haut-Brion is subdued on the nose and only gradually, reluctantly awakens with aeration, developing rose petal and summer red fruit aromas and a scent of mown lawn. The palate is quite animally, perhaps even showing some brettanomyces, and rustic and attenuated on the finish. Tasted at a private dinner in Bordeaux.
Critic scores
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Robert Parker
Robert Parker
More reviews and scores
Dark plum/garnet-tinged with some amber at the edge, the 1979 offers up notes of garrigue, truffles, damp earth, hints of iodine and seaweed (which I associate more with wines made within 100 kilometers of the Mediterranean coastline, not the Atlantic Ocean), sweet currants, plums, cherries, cedar and roasted herbs. This medium-bodied, elegant, fully mature 1979 is a lighter version of La Mission than the 1978, but, for the vintage, it is a dramatic, authoritative effort. Decent acidity remains and the tannins have largely disappeared. There is good aromatic complexity, but a slight superficiality and fading fruit in the finish suggest consumption over the next decade is warranted as this wine is unlikely to improve with additional age.
Brick rim and deep crimson. Very rich nose and round and glossy texture with good freshness. Getting a little dusty but there was obviously class here once. Drink up. Second bottle actually corked! (JR)
Dark plum/garnet-tinged with some amber at the edge, the 1979 offers up notes of garrigue, truffles, damp earth, hints of iodine and seaweed (which I associate more with wines made within 100 kilometers of the Mediterranean coastline, not the Atlantic Ocean), sweet currants, plums, cherries, cedar and roasted herbs. This medium-bodied, elegant, fully mature 1979 is a lighter version of La Mission than the 1978, but, for the vintage, it is a dramatic, authoritative effort. Decent acidity remains and the tannins have largely disappeared. There is good aromatic complexity, but a slight superficiality and fading fruit in the finish suggest consumption over the next decade is warranted as this wine is unlikely to improve with additional age. Aug 2012, www.robertparker.com
About the producer
Ch. la Mission Haut-Brion – sister estate of Ch. Haut-Brion and part of the Clarence Dillon stable – is one of the greatest estates in all of Bordeaux. Based in Pessac-Léognan but not officially classified, it produces outstanding red and white wines.