2007 Château Haut-Bergey, Pessac-Leognan, Red Bordeaux, France -photo grapelive

2007 Château Haut-Bergey, Pessac-Leognan, Red Bordeaux, France.
This vintage, 2007, is totally under the radar in Bordeaux and while it is never going to be a classic or collectable year for the region there are some fantastic wines and values, including Château Haut-Bergey’s lovely 2007, Cabernet Sauvignon based red from Pessac-Leognan. The 2007 Haut-Bergey’s nose comes across far more mature than the wine is and certainly the fresh palate is much more thrilling than I would have expected, it makes for a great drinking Bordeaux with classic layers of mulberry, currant, cherry and blackberry fruits with touch of graphite, acacia flower, wild plum, tobacco leaf, loamy earth and light cedar notes. This wine gains in personality and charm with air, it finishes with a gorgeous texture and length, making for a wine that way over delivers for the price, even if it will not get too much better with more cellaring. Château Haut-Bergey is located in the heart of the village of Léognan, mecca of Graves which is home to some famous neighboring properties such as Haut-Smith-Laffite, La Louviere, Haut-Brion, La Mission and one of my favorites Château Haut-Bailly, it’s great terroir no question and Haut-Bergey is a great value.

Founded in the 1500’s, Haut-Bergey fell in quality and the vineyards were left in disrepair in the mid 1800’s, maybe at the worst possible time in history and though new owners tried to rescue the Château and vines in 1850, the wines were not worthy to be part of the great 1855 classification and so until 1991 the wines never reached much fame. Now run by Paul Garcin, helped by his team and François Prouteau, the winemaker, the estate is all organic and the biodynamic farming adds to the energy in the wines. Château Haut-Bergey’s red wine is crafted of mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, but with a good dose of Merlot, and some parts of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec grown on the region’s mix of rounded pebbles, broken stone along with clay, limestone and shelly sand. The rise in recent times has made Château Haut-Bergey very attractive for those seeking quality at bargain prices, these wines are exceptional deals especially in less hyped years, as 2007. Apart from the slightly stewy nose, there nothing to complain about and with food this wine really comes alive and adds dimension finding a little bit of grip and filling out to a medium full wine. If you find this wine and want a savvy Bordeaux experience, I recommend buying a few bottles to drink over the next 3 to 5 years.
($28 Est.) 90+ Points, grapelive

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