Chateau Haut-Brion, Pessac-Leognan, 1989 tinar de mirat He's been making steadfastly elegant

He's been making steadfastly elegant Merlot since before the Merlot boom

earthy grip under the dark fruit

and wife Alexandra established the vineyard in 1996

then rested on lees to build texture without obscuring the salt-spray clarity of the Atlantic

Prunotto's Bussia (the cru Beppe Colla put on the map in 1961)

Chateau Haut-Brion, Pessac-Leognan, 1989 tinar de mirat He's been making steadfastly elegantHaut Brion started picking on August 31, 1989, one of the earliest harvest dates in its history, after a growing season so warm, sunny and dry that the estate still compares the resulting wine to its own 1959. The blend is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot and 9% Cabernet Franc, from the only First Growth outside the Medoc: an urban estate in Pessac where gravel deposits run up to eight meters deep, capturing and releasing heat to create the hottest