2006 Château Haut-Brion Blanc

It is always interesting to taste this wine next to its stablemate, Laville Haut-Brion. While Laville has 80% Semillon in it, giving it more fat and concentration, Haut-Brion is 55% Sauvignon Blanc and 45% Semillon. This is a crisp yet powerful wine, full-bodied, with great minerality and a subtle smokiness intermixed with hints of quince, white currant, orange skin, and lemon custard. Long, rich, and tightly knit, with good acidity and no evidence of any oak whatsoever despite the use of 100% new French oak, this wine is set for a long life as well. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2035.

(56% sauvignon blanc and 44% semillon; the harvest began on August 29) Very pale color. Pungent, scented nose offers minerals, fresh herbs, citrus peel and brisk minty lift. Juicy, vibrant and gripping, but also quite tactile and chewy, with captivating flavors of ginger candy and lemon drop. This shows a distinct sauvignon pungency and great cut and precision today. I would expect a wine like this to go on for decades in bottle, but it may well go through an extended closed stage along the way. A great example of a vintage that has produced white wines with a near-perfect combination of richness and verve.

It is always interesting to taste this wine next to its stablemate, Laville Haut-Brion. While Laville has 80% Semillon in it, giving it more fat and concentration, Haut-Brion is 55% Sauvignon Blanc and 45% Semillon. This is a crisp yet powerful wine, full-bodied, with great minerality and a subtle smokiness intermixed with hints of quince, white currant, orange skin, and lemon custard. Long, rich, and tightly knit, with good acidity and no evidence of any oak whatsoever despite the use of 100% new French oak, this wine is set for a long life as well. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2035. Wine Advocate.February, 2009