Château Haut-Brion is the oldest of the Bordeaux First Growths and the only property classified in the 1855 Bordeaux Classification that lies outside the Médoc, occupying the Pessac-Léognan appellation within the historic Graves region. The estate’s connection to Bordeaux wine history is older than any of its Médoc peers: on 10 April 1663, Samuel Pepys wrote of tasting what he described as “Ho-Bryan” at a London tavern, recording the first professional review of any wine in history. Under the de Dillon family, who have owned the estate since 1935, Haut-Brion has consistently produced wines of singular elegance and complexity rooted in the Graves’ gravelly, sandy subsoils.

The 1982 vintage stands as one of the pivotal moments in the modern history of Bordeaux wine: Robert Parker’s early and enthusiastic endorsement of the vintage against the prevailing scepticism of the established wine establishment marked the beginning of his transformation into the world’s most influential wine critic. The 1982 season in Bordeaux was defined by an extraordinary combination of a cool spring, a warm, dry summer and an extended, even ripening period that produced wines of unusual concentration and glycerol richness. Haut-Brion, under cellarmaster Jean Delmas, produced a wine from approximately 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 19% Cabernet Franc that Delmas himself always compared favourably to the legendary 1959.

With over four decades of bottle age, the 1982 Haut-Brion has entered what Parker described in his 2022 review as its period of fullest charm: “supple and enveloping… the most charming of the 1982 First Growths, yet despite its outgoing personality, it seems to gain in stature with every passing year.” The Wine Advocate awarded 95 points and Wine Spectator 95, consistent with the wine’s positioning as a deeply impressive and historically significant release that falls slightly below the most concentrated and structured examples of the vintage from Latour, Mouton or La Mission. At this stage of its development, the 1982 Haut-Brion should be consumed over the next decade with appropriate decanting.

A mature garnet with brick highlights and considerable depth. Complex aromas of scorched earth, cigar smoke, red berries and plums, tobacco leaf, cedar box, bay leaf, black truffle and aged leather. Full-bodied and broad on the palate with melting tannins, a rich core of fruit and a long, resonant finish. The most charming and accessible of the 1982 Bordeaux First Growths at this stage; drink now through 2035. 

Supple and enveloping, wafting from the glass with aromas of red berries and plums, tobacco leaf, cedar box, scorched earth, cigar smoke and walnuts. Medium to full-bodied, broad and sensual, with a rich core of fruit, melting tannins and a long, resonant finish. The most charming of the 1982 first growths, yet despite its outgoing personality, it seems to gain in stature with every passing year.  — Wine Advocate