A prodigious blend of 55% Sauvignon Blanc and 45% Semillon, the 2012 Haut-Brion blanc is the Montrachet of Bordeaux. Incredible notes of crushed rocks, spring flowers, lemon butter, tangerine oil, honeysuckle and candle wax soar from the glass of this full-bodied white. It totally hides any evidence of being aged in 100% new oak. Sadly, there are fewer than 800 cases of this fabulous Pessac-Leognan. It should age well for a half century. Bravo! Drink: 2013 - 2038 -Wine Advocate #206 Apr 2013

Fine lemon-yellow, floral, more white than yellow fruits with a lifted, taffeta elegance compared to La Mission white, the Chevalier to La Mission's Batard and both of them of Montrachet standing, a beautifully expressive wine of great length and finesse.

(55% Sauvignon Blanc/45% Semillon) Tight, alluring nose. Palate is oh-so-refined, nothing out of place, nothing too big for its boots. Supremely elegant, perfectly balanced and long, long, long - over a minute on the finish.

Lots of mineral, oyster shell, apple pie and white pepper on the nose and palate. Full and rich yet very bright and fresh. Dried pear and apple undertones. Intense.

[45SM/55SB] Fresh and grapefruit-citrus to smell, the 55% Sauvignon Blanc clear here; rich, powerful yet contained wine, generous in flavour, ample, fleshy, powerful, large scale; long and mouthfilling to taste, very tenacious in flavour, very long to finish with marked aroma, fruit, subtle minerality. Overall quietly spoken, and yet an impressively racy, energetic Grand Cru presence … Bâtard style… Splendid. 2022-35 [M.Schuster, Bordeaux Mar/Apr 2013]

The Haut Brion Blanc is a blend of 45% Semillon and 55% Sauvignon Blanc, picked between 5th to the 14th September. It has a lifted gooseberry, chalk dust and bruised apple bouquet that opens beautifully with time. The palate is lively on the entry like La Mission although I am not quite so sure it has the same complexity. It is beautifully balanced though and with a lovely waxy texture towards the finish courtesy of the Semillon. Tasted April 2013.

Plump and open now, with a mix of kaffir lime, lemongrass, white peach, macadamia nut and crème fraîche notes. Picks up a stony edge on the finish, lending grip and cut. Shows serious length in the end. Tasted non-blind. —J.M.

55% Sauvignon Blanc, 45% Sémillon. Bright greenish greyish. Very fine and sleek and gorgeous. As Steven Spurrier remarks at my side, this is Chevalier to La Mission Blanc's Bâtard-Montrachet. Minerals and vibrato. So appetising. 14.15%. Drink 2018-2030.