Wine Advisor
Clos Haut Peyraguey 2015
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2015 Château Clos Haut-Peyraguey is a blend of 95% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon Blanc cropped between 7 and 15 October. It has a very composed and pure bouquet with scents of acacia honey, mango and quince, a touch of yellow flowers developing with aeration while maintaining admirable delineation and focus. The palate is very well balanced with a viscous opening, the acidity nicely matched with the richness in situ, lending freshness and weightlessness toward the finish. This is a very elegant Sauternes that is deftly made and it should give plenty of drinking pleasure over the next two or three decades.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2015 Clos Haut Peyraguey is a blend of 95% Semillon and 5% Sauvignon Blanc, cropped at just 14 hectoliters per hectare between September 7 and October 15. It has a perfumed and quite floral bouquet with dried yellow flowers intermixed with dried honey and quince aromas. The palate is very well balanced with pure botrytised fruit, not the most complex Sauternes of the vintage, but tensile with a citrus-fresh, blood orange-tinged finish. Enjoy this over the next 5-25 years.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Candied orange peel, crème brulée, vanillin, pineapple and apricot jam meld together in the 2015 Clos Haut-Peyraguey. Deep, rich and unctuous - but with all of the finesse of the vintage - the Clos Haut-Peyraguey exudes depth, texture and pure class. The blend is 95% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon fermented in French oak barrels. Tasted two times.
About the Producer
This ancient barony, acquired in the 18th century by a Monsieur de Pichard, the then president of the Bordeaux parliament, has existed for centuries. It benefits from unique terroir and climatic conditions, supported by an ancestral savoir-faire that enables it to perform at the highest levels of excellence. At the time of the 1855 classification, the estate was called Château Peyraguey. Then, in 1879, the estate was split into two. One part was named Lafaurie-Peyraguey, as a tribute to Monsieur Lafaurie (the former owner) who had brought the property renown, while the highest parts of the estate, situated at the top of the hill of Bommes, were named Clos Haut-Peyraguey. In 2012, Bernard Magrez purchased Clos Haut-Peyraguey from the Pauly family who had run the estate since 1914. To ensure that the high levels of excellence achieved by this Sauternes Premier Grand Cru are maintained and to acquire international prestige for the growth, Bernard Magrez lavishes meticulous care and attention on the vines, applying both traditional and innovative methods to achieve a unique wine: Clos Haut-Peyraguey, a Sauternes for the initiated. The estate covers 12 hectares, 8 of them forming a single block, close to the Ciron, a tributary of the Garonne River. The vines of Clos Haut-Peyraguey are situated at an elevation of 50 to 80 metres on complex gravelly-sandy soils very suited to the Sémillon, the undisputed king grape variety at the Clos, although Sauvignon is also planted and makes up a twentieth of the vineyard. In the vineyards, sustainable farming is practised. Replanting is done by phasing in new vines, rather than replacing whole plots. Once the famous botrytis, or noble rot, has made its appearance on the bunches, the grapes are picked by hand in several sorties, only the most sugar-rich and aromatic berries being picked each time. Clos Haut-Peyraguey has won awards at the most renowned national and international wine challenges and has gained recognition by the most prestigious wine guides.
