Good full ruby-red. Explosive ripe aromas of redcurrant, minerals, chocolate mint and tomato. Large-scaled, voluptuous and sweet, with very intense berry and chocolate flavors lifted by minerals, menthol and spices. Finishes with wonderfully broad tannins and an extremely long finish that leaves the palate vibrating. From a very cold terroir (the soil is clay over rocky limestone) that takes longer to warm up each day, but in 2005 this vineyard obviously reached near-perfect ripeness. Offers an exciting combination of thickness and depth with lift.
– vinous.com, May 2008

Sylvie Garcin’s 2005 Barde-Haut comes from 42-plus acres of vineyard and is dominated by Merlot, with a good healthy dose of Cabernet Franc. It displays notes of chalk, crushed rock, blackcurrants and black cherries. It is a big, masculine style of wine from the Garcin family that has still not attained its plateau of maturity. In spite of the tannins, structure is not an issue with this wine, but it needs time to come around. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2030.
92+ points – Robert Parker (eRobertPaerker.com, June 2015

The Château Barde-Haut 2005 has a clean, very perfumed bouquet with macerated black cherries and cassis scents, a subtle pastille aromas developing with time. The palate is medium-bodied with a sweet entry, smooth and sensual in texture but very closed on the finish that needs just a little more precision. Still, there is a pleasant salinity on the aftertaste, though it needs a couple more years in bottle.

Good full red-ruby. Brooding aromas of black raspberry, blackberry and toasty oak. Broad and lush in the mouth, with a fine-grained texture and excellent palate coverage. Lively acidity gives life to the blackberry and black cherry flavor. Not at all overly sweet; in fact, this is surprisingly rigorous today. Finishes with serious tannic structure and excellent length. Very promising, stylish vintage for Barde-Haut.

Displays aromas of tobacco, berry, chocolate and spice. Full-bodied, with sweet fruit, silky tannins and a spicy currant aftertaste. Best after 2012.
– JS (WineSpectator.com, March 2008)

Dark red; sweet almost raisiny, but very attractive bouquet; powerful, tannic, forceful wine; sweet, ripe, but also a bit fierce. Straightforward in spite of its fruit concentration and tannic structure… not sure the tannin will ever be absorbed. Good, but you have to like this style. Now – 2020.