What a nose. You see the chocolate, orange peel, sweet tobacco. Goes to milk chocolate and dark chocolate. Full-bodied, with fine tannins and round tannin structure. Creamy texture. Like the great 1995. Sweet and beautiful. Try in 2016.
James Suckling
jamessuckling.com, May 9th 2012
92
The second wine, the 2009 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion, is almost as large a cuvee as the grand vin. This 7,000-case cuvee is a blend of 46% Merlot, 39% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest small quantities of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Once again the burning ember/scorched earth characteristic that often comes from Haut-Brion is found in the second wine, along with more kirsch and cassis, fewer nuances and less complexity than its bigger sibling. The wine is full-bodied with the minerality offered by this terroir as well as plenty of sweet tannins. This is the finest second wine Haut-Brion has produced since the astonishing 1989 Bahans-Haut-Brion. Enjoy it over the next two decades.
Robert Parker Jr
Wine Advocate #199
90
Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. The Clarence de Haut Brion ‘09 has a much more timid bouquet with light blackberry and briary fruit, touches of sous-bois and liquorice developing with aeration. The palate is full-bodied with a firm grip. Bold and brassy but still very well balanced with a fresh inviting finish. This is showing better than 12 months ago. Tasted January 2013.