Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion (slightly stained label) 2003

Professional Ratings

• 94 Wine Spectator
  Aromas of blackberry, tobacco and hints of oak. Full-bodied, with lots of silky and round tannins and a long finish. Lots going on here. Layered and powerful. Best after 2010.
• 94 James Suckling
  Very ripe Cabernet aromas in this, with hints of sweet tobacco, wood, and cigar box. Full bodied, with wonderful fruit and a firm finish. Tight, and not giving as much as it has now. Pull the cork after 2013. Find the wine.
• 93 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
  The 2003 La Mission Haut-Brion shows more creme de cassis, plenty of cedar wood, melted licorice and charcoal in a medium to full-bodied wine. It is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc. Rustic tannins in the back knock down the ultimate pleasure, and the point score, ever so slightly, but there’s no doubting the complex, perfumey, noble aromatics this wine has managed to attain despite the staggering heat and drought in June, July and August. This has reached full maturity, but should hold nicely for another 7-10 years.