Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesAttractive black-fruit and berry character with some chocolate and toasted-hazelnut undertones. It’s full-bodied with chewy tannins and a juicy finish. Lots of flavor. Lots of polish. 80% merlot and 20% cabernet franc. Best from 2024.
Barrel Sample: 94
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2019 Barde-Haut comes skipping out of the glass with bright, cheery black plums, Morello cherries, black raspberries and mulberries scents plus suggestions of dusty soil, cinnamon stick, pencil shavings and lavender. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has wonderful energy, with a lively line of freshness and well-played, rounded tannins, finishing with an invigorating lift.
Barrel Sample: 92-94
This beautiful estate is located on the eastern side of the appellation, and they consistently turn out brilliant wines. The 2019 Château Barde-Haut reveals a deep purple hue to go with classic limestone-influenced aromas and flavors of ripe black cherries, chalky minerality, chocolate, and white truffle. More medium to full-bodied and elegant than overtly powerful, its balance is spot on, it has beautiful tannins, and a great finish. It shows the vintage style perfectly and will benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age, and cruise for over two decades in cold cellars. Best after 2026.
Juicy and ripe, offering a slightly burly-edged mix of plum, boysenberry and blackberry compote flavors laced with hints of licorice root and alder. Grippy, with adequate energy to the tar-lined finish. Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
There has been significant investment in renovating the cellar so that all work is completely done by gravity to ensure that the precious grapes of the Chateau are well respected. The cellar is equiped with wooden vats, stainless steel tanks and concrete vats of 50 to 70 hl. A strict policy of selection to ensure the quality is undertaken and individual steps including pigeage are all carried out by hand. It is the combination of exceptional soil and the introduction of natural wine producing and winegrowing technologies combining tradition and modernity that have made CHATEAU BARDE-HAUT one of the rising stars of Saint Emilion.
Marked by its historic fortified village—perhaps the prettiest in all of Bordeaux, the St-Émilion appellation, along with its neighboring village of Pomerol, are leaders in quality on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. These Merlot-dominant red wines (complemented by various amounts of Cabernet Franc and/or Cabernet Sauvignon) remain some of the most admired and collected wines of the world.
St-Émilion has the longest history in wine production in Bordeaux—longer than the Left Bank—dating back to an 8th century monk named Saint Émilion who became a hermit in one of the many limestone caves scattered throughout the area.
Today St-Émilion is made up of hundreds of independent farmers dedicated to the same thing: growing Merlot and Cabernet Franc (and tiny amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon). While always roughly the same blend, the wines of St-Émilion vary considerably depending on the soil upon which they are grown—and the soils do vary considerably throughout the region.
The chateaux with the highest classification (Premier Grand Cru Classés) are on gravel-rich soils or steep, clay-limestone hillsides. There are only four given the highest rank, called Premier Grand Cru Classés A (Chateau Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angélus, Pavie) and 14 are Premier Grand Cru Classés B. Much of the rest of the vineyards in the appellation are on flatter land where the soils are a mix of gravel, sand and alluvial matter.
Great wines from St-Émilion will be deep in color, and might have characteristics of blackberry liqueur, black raspberry, licorice, chocolate, grilled meat, earth or truffles. They will be bold, layered and lush.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.