2021 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux

Fragrant red-fruit notes. Broad and smooth on attack with finely integrated tannins. Palate a bit more subdued but fresh with firmness on the finish. Room for development.

Drink 2026 - 2036

The 2021 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion is deep, fleshy and super-expressive. Like all of the wines in this vintage here, the Clarence is on the lighter side, but that is not a bad thing. Primary dark fruit, leather, spice and tobacco fill out the layers nicely.

There’s a ton to like in the 2021s from Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion. The reds show off the gracious side of the vintage to great effect, with lifted aromatics, silky textures and primary fruit at this early stage. It’s a terrific vintage for the whites as well, all of which are the same 55% Sémillon/45% Sauvignon Blanc blend. “Back in the 1990s, harvest dates were chosen for us by deteriorating conditions at the end of harvest. Rain and the risk of rot essentially dictated when the fruit had to come in,” Managing Director Jean-Philippe Delmas told me. “In the 2000s, with climate change, we were forced to the other extreme, that is to say picking earlier and earlier to avoid losing acidity and bringing in overripe grapes. Two thousand twenty-one was a very rare vintage in which we could harvest when we wanted to, with no pressure whatsoever.”

Drink 2025 - 2033

The 2021 Le Clarence De Haut-Brion is a slightly darker, richer wine with lots of black cherries, scorched earth, and graphite notes as well as medium to full-bodied richness and depth on the palate. Balanced, elegant, and seamless, it's certainly a beautiful wine and as well as a terrific introduction to this château.

Drink 2018 - 2038

The 2021 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion has a very pure bouquet of blueberry, cedar and violet, perhaps slightly more ethereal than the La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion. The palate is medium-bodied with quite strict tannins and a little more saline than expected, leading to a fresh finish. Maybe it lacks a bit of persistence, but it is a fine Deuxième Vin.

Drink 2026 - 2036

Bright and vibrant ruby and violet in colour, and even with higher levels of Merlot in the blend this year, this is more structured and subdued than the Chapelle with the character difference between the two estates fairly marked. Has a feeling of solidity and depth, with a focus on black fruits and tight tannins, give it a good four or five years before opening. 28% new oak.

Drink 2025 - 2038

More closed and shy than La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion, the 2021 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion offers up a delicate, complex bouquet with aromas of plums, spices, lead pencil, licorice and dark berries. Medium to full-bodied with a structuring core of fruit, it’s seamless and vibrant with a long, penetrating finish. Keep it over the next decade.

Drink 2024 - 2034

Dark chocolate and red cherries on the nose, so aromatic, rich and seductive. Joyful and lifted on the palate, strawberries and plums to the fore but creamy and chalky with such sappy, agile and lively energy. Lightly framed so you get the aerial expansion of flavour but the texture that grips is chalky and mineral giving a welcome salinity and touch of tobacco and smoke that lands on the tongue. Beautifully presented, smooth and well defined, such succulence and density with no let up through the palate. Intensity, clarity and focus. An excellent second wine in 2021.

Drink 2025 - 2045

70.4% Merlot, 18.2% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11.4% Cabernet Franc.

Lots of iodine and oyster-shell aromas, together with blackberry and black cherry, following through to a medium to full body. Polished yet slightly chewy tannins and a fresh finish. Grilled orange.