Aromas of graphite and delicate red currants with an aromatic lift. The palate is medium- to full-bodied, showing energy and intensity, with concentration and round, enveloping, silky tannins that envelop the fruit and persist through the finish. Accessible now, but it deserves more time. Try from 2028. 10 Years On retrospective. Jacobo García Andrade Senior Editor

The 2016 Haut-Brion is blended of 56% Merlot, 37.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6.5% Cabernet Franc. Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the nose is at once profound and arresting, offering drop-dead gorgeous Morello cherries, lilacs and red rose scents with a core of Black Forest cake, warm blackcurrants and blueberry preserves plus wafts of sandalwood and underbrush. Medium-bodied, the elegantly crafted palate is completely packed with intense floral, mineral and cassis-laced flavors with a firm frame of very finely pixelated tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long and achingly stunning. - LPB

Composed of 56% Merlot, 37.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 6.5% Cabernet Franc, the 2016 Haut-Brion is deep garnet in color. The nose beings with simple licorice notes before slowly unfurling to deliver growing scents of creme de cassis, plum preserves, dark chocolate, and lilacs, followed by suggestions of crushed rocks, tar, black truffles and cardamom. The full-bodied palate is a tightly coiled spring, taut with black fruit preserves and earthy layers and framed by very firm, grainy tannins, delivering a burst of freshness to carry the long, long, long finish. This will need a good 7-10 more years to fully blossom, and it will be well worth the wait.

Immensely tannic, this is a great Haut-Brion, one of the finest for many years. It shows the severe side of this estate, with a dense structure to match the powerful black fruits. Rich with berry flavors and lifted by enough acidity, the wine will age for many years. Drink from 2026. — Roger Voss

Muscular tannins, fresh acidities, this has less generosity than the Mission, still almost primary at ten years old, focused and vivid, riven with sage, wild rosemary and fragrant toasted spice, a glorious uplift through the palate, bilberry and cranberry fruits, austere architecture that needs a good few more years.

98+ As to the reds, the 2016 Haut Brion is a prodigious, legendary wine in the making, although it’s not for those seeking instant gratification. Deeper colored and more concentrated than the La Mission Haut Brion, it reveals a purple/ruby color as well as a sensational bouquet of blackcurrants, cassis, cigar tobacco, cold fireplace, violets, and lead pencil. Deep, masculine, structured, and mineral-laced, it has a stacked mid-palate, full-bodied richness, building tannins, and a firm, blockbuster styled finish that lasts for close to a minute. A wine for the ages, don’t even think about opening bottles for at least 7-8 years. It should keep for half a century. The blend in 2016 is 56% Merlot, 37.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 6.5% Cabernet Franc.

The 2016 Haut-Brion has a gorgeous bouquet with red berry fruit, camphor, wild heather and hints of truffle, all beautifully defined and focused. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, exquisitely balanced, silky smooth and with a very persistent finish. The Merlot is very expressive here at the moment, shaping this Pessac-Léognan. Utterly seductive. - Neal Martin

Large and in charge, this has a prodigious core of steeped plum, black currant and loganberry fruit flavors that show both compote and coulis aspects. While that steeps, this delivers a sturdy frame of roasted mesquite, smoldering tobacco and incense, surrounding a muscular spine of worn cedar and tar. Still rather backward, this will be showing well when most others from the vintage have had their day. Best from 2025 through 2045.

Classic and just beginning to evolve, showing a wonderful gravelly character on the nose. The palate is concentrated and precise, with superb integration of flavours and a subtle touch of bitterness that rounds the wine beautifully. Super-fine tannins carry the structure gracefully, giving balance, poise and elegance. This exemplifies refinement, depth and harmony in a thoroughly measured and expressive 2016. Exceptional.

97+ I tasted the 2016 Haut-Brion when very young and it was a powerhouse of goodies. The wine still has a fine, exquisite and fruity nose, classic, dark and subtle with notes of cigar box and raw, smoky power. It is a classic Haut-Brion with its finely structured nose and powerful personality of cassis and fruit. It will require at least a decade to come around but all elements seem to be in place.