1987 Haut Brion

Smooth, polished, a lighter-weight wine with pleasant berry and smoke flavors with a hint of iris in the background.--Haut-Brion vertical. Harvey Steiman, Wine Spectator 1997

This is an example of a light vintage that produced an immensely seductive, supple, delicious wine that seemed nearly fully mature when released in 1989 yet has continued to offer a fragrant, round, elegant, delicious style of wine that never hit the blockbuster high marks of the great vintages but is, oh, so satisfying and so typically Haut-Brion. Remarkably, the wine seems to defy aging, staying fragrant, sweet, round, relatively light, but delicious and so well balanced. I would have thought this wine would have long faded, but it continues to drink beautifully, with only some amber creeping in at the edge. Anticipated maturity: Now-2006. An example of how perfectly balanced even lighter-styled wines can last longer than anyone expects. Last tasted, 11/02. Jan 2003, www.robertparker.com