1945 La Mission Haut Brion

Magnum drunk in London but imported from New York. Very savoury, tight and straight-laced. Pretty dry finish and slightly dank. Not the lusciousness of the first growth 1990s and 1982s served immediately before it. Difficult to see when the fruit and tannin will be in perfect balance. (JR)

Tasted 7 Times With Inconsistent Notes The 1945 La Mission is certainly a great wine with fabulous concentration, but also a leathery, tough, hard texture. It is very powerful, broodingly rich and opaque, but the tannin is extremely elevated and one wonders what is going to fall away first, the fruit or the tannin? This wine still has the potential to last for another 20-25 years, and therein lies much of the mystique of this vintage.