2016 Barde Haut Bordeaux Red

2016 Barde Haut

95 JD

Featured Review

Lastly, the 2016 Château Barde-Haut might end up being the best wine ever made at this address from the Garcin-Lévêque family, and it certainly ranks with the crème de la crème of the vintage. Dense purple-hued with awesome notes of cassis, black cherries, spring flowers, damp earth, and violets, it hits the palate with incredible purity and precision, a deep, multi-dimensional texture, sweet tannins (from ripe fruit, not sugar), and a building sense of minerality that shows on the finish. It has the depth of fruit and elegance to shine even today yet will benefit from 3-5 years of bottle age and evolve for two decades. Jeb Dunnuck

Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JD

This shows such complex and beautiful aromas of flowers, lavender, light spearmint and currants. Medium to full body, very fine tannins and a long finish. All about finesse and length. Drink after 2022.

James Suckling | 94 JS

A very fresh, juicy style, with pretty floral hints framing a core of cherry, pomegranate and red currant fruit flavors that meld into one another while light anise and rooibos tea accents fill in on the finish. A mineral note knits it all up nicely. Best from 2021 through 2033. 5,000 cases made. — JM

Wine Spectator | 92 WS

The 2016 Barde-Haut is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, vinified without SO2, matured around 80% in new 300-liter barrels from three cooperages and the remainder in one-year-old barrels. Hélène Garçin-Léveque told me that they are focusing on the elegance of their Saint Emilion estate and are picking a little earlier and practicing slightly less extraction. It has a really quite gorgeous bouquet with layers of ripe black plum and wild strawberry notes tinged with sloes. This has very fine delineation and focus. The palate is very well balanced with super-fine tannin, very well judged acidity and tension that lasts from start to finish. This is certainly one of the most feminine Barde-Haut wines that I have tasted from barrel, expressing more precision and finesse. It is an excellent follow-up to the 2015 Barde-Haut and may well surpass it in the long-term.

Robert Parker Neal Martin | 92-94 RP-NM

The 2016 Barde-Haut is a racy, voluptuous beauty. Mocha, espresso, plum, black cherry and smoke race across the palate in a dark, sumptuous Saint Émilion loaded with class and personality. This is an especially up-front style. With time in the glass, the wine gains brightness and precision to balance things out. The 2016 is easily one of the best recent versions of Barde-Haut I can remember tasting. Today, it is fabulously beautiful.

Vinous Media | 92-95 VM

Type of Wine	Bordeaux Red : Picture in your mind a combination of cedar, lead pencil, blackcurrant, plum and mineral aromatics, and texture that caresses your palate like a playful lover. The experience is thrilling from the first whiff to the final seconds of a tannic, generous finish - that is what you'll get from a Bordeaux Red
Varietal	Bordeaux Blend
Country	France : Wine is the lifeblood that courses through the country of France, pulsing with vigorous pride and determination. Viticulture is not just a hobby or an occupation in France; it is a passion, a cherished tradition that has been passed down through generations of wine stained hands. Winemaking is a beloved art that has been ingrained in the culture, an aptitude instilled in sons by fathers and the hallmark for which France’s reputation was built, allowing it to be renowned as, arguably, the most important wine producing country in the world. For centuries, France has been producing wines of superior quality and in much greater quantity than any other country in the world. It boasts some of the most impressive wine regions, coveted vineyards and prestigious wines on earth. The regions of Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone, Sauternes and Champagne have become the benchmark, for which others aspire to become. Legendary producers such as Chateaux Margaux, Domaine De La Romanee Conti, Chapoutier, d’Yquem and Dom Perignon are idolized world-wide. France has stamped its name on nearly every style of wine, from the nectar-like sweet Sauternes to hedonistic Chateauneuf Du Papes classic Bordeaux and Burgundy, to its sparkling dominance in Champagne. Many of the most infamous grape varietals in the world, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay originated in France and are not only beloved, but utilized in the creation of some of the greatest wines on earth. French wine production commands the attention of the wine market year after year. With over 860,000 hectares under vine, and numbers close to 50 million hectoliters of wine produced annually, France dominates the market and sets the standard for not only product quality, but also quantity. France’s many contributions to the world of wine have been absolutely indispensable. The country is the originator of the term “Premier Cru,” coined the term Terroir (a French term so complex there is no literal translation) and has laid the blueprint for a structured appellation system, which others have implemented in their own countries. French vineyard techniques and winemaking practices are mimicked world-wide. California vintners have been replicating Rhone style wines for decades, South America has adopted the French varietal of Malbec and countries around the world are imitating Burgundian styled Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. With vast diversity in terroir, France is home to some of the most hospitable winegrowing locations on earth. The combination of topography, geology, climate, rainfall and even the amount of sunlight combined with the long historical tradition of winegrowing and making, has allowed the vintners of France to not only hone their skills, but learn from nature to create a product that like the world in which it resides… is very much alive.