Château La Mission Haut-Brion 2024

Radiant on the nose, inviting you to dive in: cassis, blackberries, subtle roasted notes, plenty of florality, seductive; on the palate, silky-smooth, delicate fruit, sensationally fine tannins, gliding weightlessly across the tongue, powerful yet featherlight, great balance, very good length. A mission in a classic style, bringing joy at every stage of its life.

Blackcurrant and black cherry on the palate. Bright pink/purple rim to the glass. Smells sweet, candy floss and softly floral with rose petals. Thick and glossy, this has a great weight on the palate - slightly chewy, present tannins fill the mouth with high-toned, just-ripe fruit that has a touch of tension to it. Straight and buzzy, this has detail but is still a little tangy and massy. I like the chalky, mineral-driven elements on the finish. Not as detailed and finessed as the wine can be. Less dynamic and vibrant. 3.65 pH. 5.3% press. A yield of 26 hl/ha.

Flowers, cherries, smoke, tobacco, spice, and herbs fill the perfume. The palate is medium-bodied, energetic, fresh, and bright, with a spicy, smoky, herbal tint to the red fruits on the mid-palate that carries through to the finish. The wine will drink relatively early; give it a few years in bottle and it should fill out and soften quite a bit. The wine blends 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46.5% Merlot, and 2.5% Cabernet Franc, 13.2% ABV, 3.65 pH. Harvesting took place on September 18 and October 2. Drink from 2029–2050. 93–95 pts

A discreet yet charming nose, aromatic, with notes of plum and raspberry, and a leafy touch. The palate soothes, like the constant murmur of a fountain. The fruit rises in intensity, coats the cheeks, blossoms, then slowly withdraws, gracefully, toward a harmonious, serene finish.

Lovely fresh nose, elegant and airy, offering a graphite edge, a stretched profile and a pretty fine, straightforward, finely sappy grain. Nicely integrated. Notes of wild blackberry and violet, and, more subtly, small wild red berries, are joined by fine hints of creamy strawberry, discreet touches of smoke and tobacco, and a fine hint of maceron, roasted hazelnut and vanilla. The palate is beautifully guided, fruity, and offers freshness, minerality, a fresh backbone, suppleness, juiciness, a certain melodious feel, a taut grain, energy and an airy character. On the palate, this wine shows notes of fresh wild blackcurrant, small fresh/tangy black berries and crunchy cherry, with touches of racy minerality, fine hints of lily, smoke, graphene, iodine and bitter almond (in the background). The tannins are precise, straightforward and racy. The finish is delicately powdery. Lovely freshness and definition. Great energy and well-judged acidity.