Critic Notes
This is juicy and still compact, with a big core of plum sauce, pastis and graphite, followed by lots of kirsch and sweet spice on the finish. Still needs to unwind. Tasted non-blind. James Molseworth, winespectator.com
Score: 93-96/100Wine Spectator
The second wine of Haut-Brion is now called Le Clarence de Haut-Brion, and the 2010 is among the finest I have tasted there. It is a broad, powerful and more muscular wine than its cross-street rival, La Chapelle de la Mission, but all the same, it is wonderfully fresh and precise, with notes of blueberry and boysenberry as well as hints of smoke and wet stones. Endowed with gorgeous fruit, texture, purity and elegance, this relatively dense second wine demonstrates how draconian the selection process has become for the top estates in Bordeaux in recent years. The blend of this wine is 52% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest mostly Cabernet Franc with just a touch of Petit Verdot. I would expect it to last at least 20 years, which is remarkable. Feb 2013, www.robertparker.com
Score: 93-/100Robert Parker
This is a fresh and lively young wine. The second wine of Haut-Brion has a lot of linear richness. I really like the texture of this with super polished tannins and vibrant acidity. jamessuckling.com
Score: 92-93/100James Suckling
Le Clarence de Haut Brion With 52% Merlot 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Petit Verdot in the blend, the wine opens with smoke, oak, boysenberry, cassis and earthy tones. Soft cassis, flavors and a long finish make this a strong, surprisingly fresh and ample effort for a second wine. winecellarinsider.com
Score: 91-93/100Jeff Leve
The second wine from Chateau Haut Brion, originally called Bahans Haut Brion, has been renamed Clarence Haut Brion. It has something of the perfumed body of the great wine itself, as well as heavy acids, tannin and alcohol at 14.4%. It may be enjoyed in twelve years but at its best in eighteen or twenty.
Score: 17-/20Ivor Davies
52% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. Very bright blueish purple. Lighter nose than Chapelle La Mission but very refined and aromatic. Drawing-room refinement, really quite spindly. All frame and not much flesh at the moment. Very, very dry on the finish. There is even a hint of green. Will need quite a time to broaden out. jancisrobinson.com
Score: 17-/20Jancis Robinson
