| Red Wine | Cabernet Sauvignon | Pessac-Leognan | Bordeaux | |||
| Type | Varietal | Appellation | Region |
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Cellar Notes |
Date printed: 09/07/10 |
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Château Bahans Haut-Brion Pessac Léognan 2005
Price on 09/07/10: $90.00 |
Winemaker's Notes
Grown on the same land as Château Haut-Brion, Château Bahans Haut-Brion, profits from the same planting and harvest techniques, and has the advantage of the same rigorous selection and thoroughness in vinification as the "Grand Vin".
Bahans Haut-Brion is aged partly in new barrels and partly in barrels that have been used for the previous year's First Growth. Undoubtedly, this Second Wine of a First Classified Growth, Château Bahans Haut-Brion, is a great wine on its own merits.
Wine Enthusiast The second wine of Château Haut-Brion is firm, mirroring its grand vin. It is dark, brooding and dense, rounded by ripe fruits. There is also an edge of bitter chocolate that offers an intriguing counterpoint to the elegance of the fruit. Score: 92. —Roger Voss, June 01, 2008.
About Château Bahans Haut-Brion
Every great wine is the culmination of centuries of work by people looking for, and then acquiring, the best parcels. The second wine is not grown on specific parcels. It is grown on the same land as the First Growth. Thus it has the same origin, the same character, and the same originality as the First Growth. The difference between the two is that the First Growth is the product of the ultimate search for excellence, while the second wine does not attain the same complexity and force. The second wine is the junior model of the First Growth. Why the name of Bahans? It is important to make the distinction between a second wine and a second growth. Neither two separate growths nor two different wines may belong to the same parcel of land. However the same area may produce two distinct levels of quality, for example a First Growth, and its Second Wine. Therefore, though a Second Wine does lack its own identity or geographic position, it nevertheless shares the identity and the history of the First Growth. Since the beginning of the century, the Second Wine of Château Haut-Brion bears the name of "Bahans". This name comes from a family who in the past owned a small part of the Haut-Brion estate. The name of this wine is to commemorate the historical contribution made by the Bahans family to the making of fine wine.