*Out of Stock* Chateau Haut-Bages Liberal 2004 Pauillac Fifth Growths of 1855 Grand Cru Classes 《Terroir Collection - TF537 》

Region : Pauillac , France 

Grapes : 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot

Alcohol : 13 % vol

Website: http://www.hautbagesliberal.com/en/our-wines.aspx

⭐️ 1885 bordeaux classification , Haut Bages Liberal classified as Fifth Growths Pauillac 

⭐️ High destiny planting 10000 vines per hectares , organic farming

⭐️ Robert Parker : This under-priced 

🥇 Wine Advocate 90

🥇 Jancis Robinson 17+ ， Jancis Robinson comment:  Haut Bages Liberal 2004 : 「Really is Steal ! 」

「Attractive spiciness and no excess of dryness of tannin. Well managed and well balanced. The only reproach one might make is that it is a little mild and low key – but then so is Lafite. Quite a bit of weight. Very vigorous. Very good! Very fine tannins, there in abundance.」

The Property

AT THE ORIGINS

The LIBERAL family had run the estate since the early XVIII th century. Then as wine brokers from father to son, they would sell most of the crops to the Netherlands and Belgium. Thanks to their name being next to that of the place, they were often invited to sit at the round tables of the political parties by the same name all over the world.

 As time passed, those fine connoisseurs of wine collected the best soils of the Pauillac area. That is why half of the vineyard of this 1855 fifth classified growth is next to Château Latour and the other half is behind Château Pichon Baron, located on the higher part of the place called « Bages », a large plateau south of Pauillac.

A BEAUTIFUL VINEYARD

This beautiful vineyard found a new youth in 1960 when the Cruse family, the owner at the time of Château Pontet-Canet - also a fifth classified growth - purchased the estate and launched a vast program of replanting the vines.

 But it is not until the arrival of the Villars-Merlaut family in 1982 that Château Hau-Bages Liberal came back into its former splendor. Jacques Merlaut and his family already owned Château Chasse Spleen and château La Gurgue.

 At the demise of her parents, Claire Villars took over and since 2000 -  when the various estates were shared among the members of the family - she has fully been in charge of the estate as well as Château Ferrière and Château La Gurgue.

1855 CLASSIFICATION

From the beginning of the 19th century, the wine brokers had established a classification of great wines according to their reputation, fame and price.

But it is on April 18th, 1855 at the request of Emperor Napoléon III and with the Paris world Fair in mind, that the latest classification was published. The list includes 61 wines, all coming from the Medoc area except Château Haut-Brion, produced in the Graves appellation. The 61 wineries were classified in 5 levels.

Today, the 1855 classification has indeed a historic but also a real value because the wines from these classified properties are exceptional and their terroirs are the greatest in the region.

Owner: CLAIRE VILLARS LURTON

Though she was born into a wine growers' family, Claire Villars Lurton did not intend to manage a property. She lived in Paris where she had a master's degree in chemistry and physics. She was preparing a thesis in physics dealing with the preservation of old books at the CNRS (NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH) when her parents died in an accident in 1992. She decided to get actively involved in the management of the family properties. She gave up her studies and joined her grandfather Jacques Merlaut to continue the work of her mother Bernadette Villars Merlaut.

With flawless energy and determination, Claire took control of Château Chasse-Spleen which she has maintained at the top of the hierarchy of the Cru Bourgeois classification.

At the same time, Claire studied vine growing and oenology at the University of Bordeaux with outstanding professors such as Yves Glories and Denis Dubourdieu. However, her main tutor was her grandfather, Jacques Merlaut. He taught her how to discipline her energy and sort out what is essential.

In 1994 she married with Gonzague Lurton, the owner of Château Durfort-Vivens, a 2nd Classified Growth in Margaux. Together, they purchased Château Domeyne, in Saint-Estèphe in 2006 and the Trinité Estate vineyard in 2012. This estate Located in the North of California, the property produces one of the greatest wines of Sonoma County named : Acaibo.

Since 2000, the year when the family estates were shared, Claire has been at 100% involved in the management of the properties that have belonged to her. Through her work, Château La Gurge has improved its elegance, Château Ferrière has found a new youth allying power and finesse. As for Château Haut-Bages Libéral, the wine completed its powerful Pauillac style with a touch of feminine elegance.

Beyond the technical improvements brought years after years to each of the properties, Claire's main achievement has been to make out the best of the great terroir under her care. According to Claire, biodynamic farming is the key of the success.

THE TERROIR

The outstanding climate and geological conditions of Pauillac enable the making of very great wines. The appellation includes 18 classified growths among which are 3 out of the 5 first classified growths of 1855.The Pauillac landscape is shaped by hilltops of gravels where the cabernet-sauvignon finds its favorite terroir.The four components of the terroir are: the soil, the climate, the choice of the vine and the human contribution.

The soil

The vineyard of the estate consists of 2 parts, one of deep gravels and the other of chalky clay and chalky limestone. This kind of soil gives to the wine its power and its minerality.A large area of these gravelly soils overlooks the Gironde estuary. The gravels have been brought by the river from the Pyrenees about the quaternary. Elles reposent sur une roche mère calcaire. En effet, certaines parcelles situés autour de la propriété présentent un affleurement naturel de calcaire.In addition to the nature of the soil, the holes and bumps landform of one part of the vineyard plays an important role in the drainage of the rain water. The « jalles » between the hilltops are draining brooklets that do away with the exceeding water. It makes it necessary for the roots of the vines to grow deep to get the water it needs.   This terroir has a great quality, it limits the growth of the vines and has no fear of the drought.

The climate

As it lies between the Atlantic Ocean and the large Gironde estuary, the Medoc vineyard is under a temperate, mild, wet, ocean climate.

The choice of the grape variety 

The grape varieties authorized at Pauillac are cabernet-sauvignon, merlot, cot, carménère, cabernet franc and petit verdot.Cabernet sauvignon accounts for the majority of the Pauillac AOC (protected designation of origin).  It provides the wine with its structure, its bouquet, and its aging potentialities. Then comes merlot which brings roundness to the wines.The estate of Haut-Bages Libéral consists of 30 hectares, with 70% of cabernet-sauvignon and 30% of merlot.   

The human contribution

Man is one of the elements of the terroir. Through his cultural practices and his actions, he puts his mark. He adapts the vines (clone and rootstock) according to the nature of the soil and the microclimate.As wine growers, we are to handle a heritage by permanently adapting and questioning ourselves to improve the fruits of our vineyards.

OUR VINEYARD IN BIODYNAMICS FARMING

Château Hau-Bages Libéral is on the way of getting the organic farming certification. This first certification will allow the estate to continue its fight for the protection of the environment and eventually claim a biodynamic farming certification.It took several years for the achievement of this approach. They had to get familiar with it and make it part of the daily life of the property. Today it federates our teams that are totally involved in it.This orientation is the fruit of an awareness that we inherited an exceptional terroir which needs to be protected and to live on thanks to organic vine growing.The idea is to go further in the quest of finding the balance between the vine and its natural environment and at the same time give the vine the energy necessary to protect itself from diseases.The enhancement of the terroir by these environmental-friendly cultural methods opens the way to more finesse, depth and balance in our wines revealing their minerality and a vibrating freshness which is the signature of great wines on a great terroir.

THE WINEMAKING

The winery was completely renovated in 2001 and since 2017 a second renovation has been on its way under the direction of the famous Bordeaux architect Fabien Pédelaborde who also renovated Château Ferrière , a third classified growth at Margaux owned by Claire Villars Lurton.  This new distribution of the spaces and the embellishment of the place bring up the property to the standards of a classified growth.

THE WINE CELLAR

The wine cellar consists of two units (16 concrete vats and 16 inox vats) linked by a glass roofed structure where the grapes are brought. All the vats are thermo-regulated and are of various capacity. The capacity has been chosen according to the average production of each parcel and each sub-parcel, considering the terroir, the variety, the age of the vine to be harvested in due time to adapt a precise and different winemaking according to each terroir.

THE AGEING

After its vinification Château Haut-Bages Liberal wine is aged between 16 to 18 months according to the vintage in barrels of fine grain French oak renewed by 50% every year for the fist wine and 15% for the second wine. This stage is important and allows to stabilize the wine.The ageing cellar takes into consideration the temperature and hygrometry required for the best ageing conditions thanks to its automatic processing of the temperature about 15° to 16°C and of the humidity about 80%.Rapidly, the blending of the wine takes place at the beginning of the year following the harvest.The wine is clarified with egg white before being be bottled. This practice avoids a final filtration.

Wine Adcocate 90 pts

Another sleeper of the vintage, this under-priced, beautifully made Pauillac exhibits a deep ruby/purple color along with a sweet bouquet of creme de cassis, licorice, tapenade, and spice box. Medium to full-bodied with silky tannin and low acidity, it is a pure, expressive wine to drink over the next 12-15 years.

Jancis Robinson 17+ pts

Liquid purple, relatively opulent on the nose. Quite deep and trying very hard. Attractive spiciness and no excess of dryness of tannin. Well managed and well balanced. The only reproach one might make is that it is a little mild and low key – but then so is Lafite. Quite a bit of weight. Very vigorous. Very good! Very fine tannins, there in abundance.