Red, Ready, but will keep

2007 Ch. Haut Batailley, Pauillac

2007 Ch. Haut Batailley, Pauillac

Red | Ready, but will keep | Chateau Haut-Batailley | Code:  942707 | 2007 | France > Bordeaux > Pauillac | Cab.Sauvignon Blend | Full Bodied, Dry | 13.5 % alcohol

Named after a `bataille' that was fought here between the French and English (who else) 600 years ago, Batailley has once again lived up to its reputation of offering good value, early drinking, quintessential Pauillac. Made from 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, its toasty, ripe plum and cedar nose leads on to a palate with vivid cassis and raspberry fruit, creamy vanilla oak and a lovely long finish. Tried, trusted and adored, Batailley has produced another sterling effort in 2007.

Prices: 

Please note:

Wines sold "In Bond" (including BBX) or “En Primeur” are not available for immediate delivery and storage charges may apply.

Duty and VAT must be paid separately before delivery can take place.

Case price (Bottle 12 x 75cl)

£477.48

Bottle 12 x 75cl 17cs

£371.88

Case price (Bottle 6 x 75cl)

£238.74

Bottle 6 x 75cl 20cs

£185.94
See All Listings

Scores and Reviews

BBR

14.5/20

DECANTER

16.5/100

JANCIS

17/20

WA

89/100

DECANTER - Deep colour, nicely expressive fruit, well-poised with elegance, style and length.

JANCIS - 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, Mid claret. Very rich and full and round, Very slightly inky but massive and opulent. A little dry and green on the finish but pretty glamorous. Some freshness. A little chewy. Xavier Borie said the big challenge was to keep freshness. (Jancis Robinson – www.jancisrobinson.com – Apr 08)

WA - Tasted at BI Wine & Spirits' 10-Years-On tasting, the 2007 Haut Batailley actually had a very similar bouquet to the Batailley, though there is more red fruit here with a subtle scent of Tuscan delicatessen emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp tannin, a pleasant chewiness on the entry, solid and armed with commendable presence, even with some sinew on the finish. Sure, it is a bit rough around the edges, though it is probably the best example of this particular wine that I have tasted. Tasted February 2017.
Neal Martin - 30/06/2017

The Producer
Chateau Haut-Batailley

Chateau Haut-Batailley

In the spring of 2017, the Cazes family of Ch. Lynch-Bages, acquired the Château Haut-Batailley estate from the Brest-Borie family, who had owned it since the 1930s. The fifth-growth property has approximately 22 hectares of vines, which are – on average – 35 years old.

Located in the very south of the Pauillac appellation, the property shares a similar climate to that enjoyed by the Médoc: maritime, with the Gironde estuary and the Bay of Biscay combining to act as a climate regulator and the coastal pine forests sheltering the vines from the westerly and north-westerly winds. Its near neighbours include Ch. Lynch-Bages, Ch. Pichon Lalande and Ch. Latour.

The vineyards (Cabernet Sauvignon 61%; Merlot 36%; Petit Verdot 3%) lie on deep gravel beds over limestone. It is classified as a 5ème cru classé.

View Producer

The Grape
Cab.Sauvignon Blend

Cab.Sauvignon Blend

Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.

In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.

In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and  Australia.

View Grape

The Region
Pauillac

Pauillac

Pauillac is the aristocrat of the Médoc boasting boasting 75 percent of the region’s First Growths and with Grand Cru Classés representing 84 percent of Pauillac's production.

For a small town, surrounded by so many familiar and regal names, Pauillac imparts a slightly seedy impression. There are no grand hotels or restaurants – with the honourable exception of the establishments owned by Jean-Michel Cazes – rather a small port and yacht harbour, and a dominant petrochemical plant.

Yet outside the town, , there is arguably the greatest concentration of fabulous vineyards throughout all Bordeaux, including three of the five First Growths. Bordering St Estèphe to the north and St Julien to the south, Pauillac has fine, deep gravel soils with important iron and marl deposits, and a subtle, softly-rolling landscape, cut by a series of small streams running into the Gironde. The vineyards are located on two gravel-rich plateaux, one to the northwest of the town of Pauillac and the other to the south, with the vines reaching a greater depth than anywhere else in the Médoc.

Pauillac's first growths each have their own unique characteristics; Lafite Rothschild, tucked in the northern part of Pauillac on the St Estèphe border, produces Pauillac's most aromatically complex and subtly-flavoured wine. Mouton Rothschild's vineyards lie on a well-drained gravel ridge and - with its high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon - can produce (in its best years) Pauillac's most decadently rich, fleshy and exotic wine.

Latour, arguably Bordeaux's most consistent First Growth, is located in southern Pauillac next to St Julien. Its soil is gravel-rich with superb drainage, and Latour's vines penetrate as far as five metres into the soil. It produces perhaps the most long-lived wines of the Médoc.

Recommended Châteaux
Ch. Lafite-Rothschild, Ch. Latour, Ch. Mouton-Rothschild, Ch. Pichon-Longueville Baron, Ch. Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, Ch. Lynch-Bages, Ch. Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Ch, Pontet-Canet, Les Forts de Latour, Ch. Haut-Batailley, Ch. Batailley, Ch. Haut-Bages Libéral.

View Region