Product description
En Primeur Château Haut Brion will be available for delivery or storage once it lands in the UK, usually two years following the en primeur offer.
The estate of Château Haut-Brion can be precisely dated back to April 1525 when Jean de Pontac married Jeanne de Bellon, the daughter of the mayor of Libourne and seigneur of Hault-Brion, who brought the land in her dowry. Lord Arnaud III de Pontac became the owner of Haut-Brion in 1649 and the wine’s growing popularity began in earnest. The first records of Haut-Brion wine were found in the wine cellar ledger of King Charles II in 1660. During the years 1660 and 1661, 169 bottles of the ‘wine of Hobriono’ were served at the king’s court. The re-establishment of a royal court and of court culture led to an increased demand for luxury goods. This inspired Pontac to launch the prototype of top-growth claret in London. Samuel Pepys wrote in his diary after tasting the wine at Royal Oak Tavern on April 10 1663, that he ‘drank a sort of French wine called Ho Bryen that hath a good and most particular taste I never met with’. After a series of unsuccessful owners during difficult times, the American banker Clarence Dillon bought Château Haut-Brion on May 13 1935 for 2,300,000 Francs.
Haut-Brion first began using its distinctive bottle, emulating designs of old decanter models, from the 1958 vintage which was released in 1960. In 1976, the 1970 vintage of Haut-Brion ranked fourth among the ten French and California red wines in the historic “Judgment of Paris” wine competition.
Château Haut-Brion devotes over 100 acres to red grape varieties with a distribution of 45.4% Merlot, 43.9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9.7% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. Harvesting takes place by hand and each parcel is worked by the same team of workers to increase the teams’ familiarity with the individual vines. After sorting in the field, the red grapes are destemmed, crushed and moved to a special double-tank with fermentation taking place on the top and malolactic fermentation on the bottom, using gravity to move the wine. Ageing in oak casks, 35% new.
En Primeur pricing is per case as specified and excludes UK duty and VAT, which will be charged at the prevailing rate when the wine is released from bond for delivery. Bonded storage is available. Onward delivery or transfer is not included and can be quoted for on request. Free delivery on orders over £100 does not apply to bonded or en primeur wines.