May 8, 2025
A sensual Haut-Bailly 2024
2024 Haut-Bailly
“I encountered a rare sense of luxuriousness and textural silkiness in a handful of the finest wines in 2024, and Haut-Bailly is one such wine. I don’t often write the words ‘Bonnes-Mares’ about truly great Bordeaux, but there is more than a haunting, ethereal character about this wine that reminds me of the wilder, more densely packed Grand Cru wines from the Côte de Nuits. The perfume is heart-stopping” - Matthew Jukes
Haut-Bailly is one of Pessac-Léognan’s most refined and consistently elegant estates. Nestled atop a gravelly ridge just outside Bordeaux, the property has built a reputation for producing Cabernet-led wines of finesse, precision, and longevity. Now under the direction of Véronique Sanders, Haut-Bailly combines classical structure with modern polish. Low yields, meticulous vineyard work, and a state-of-the-art gravity-flow cellar ensure each vintage reflects the unique terroir—resulting in wines that age gracefully and are adored by collectors worldwide. Haut-Bailly is one of those wineries that seems to do everything right.
The 2024 Haut-Bailly is a sensual and supremely elegant Pessac-Léognan, with layers of perfumed red fruit, floral lift and silky, fine-grained tannins. This vintage shows a more ethereal, Burgundian expression of the estate, with a creamy texture and haunting aromatics of wild strawberry, rose petal and tobacco. Described by Antonio Galloni as “one of the most pleasurable 2024s to drink”, it’s poised, refined, and destined to be one of the standout Haut-Baillys of recent years. We were big fans of the wine when we tasted it and the critics scores of 93-95 Points from Galloni and 92-94 Points from Neal Martin are amongst the upper end of the vintage.
True to form, the 2024 Haut-Bailly is poised and understated, offering a graceful expression of the estate’s timeless elegance. What sets it apart this year is the sharp pricing—down 36% from 2023—positioning it as one of the most attractive buys on the Left Bank. For collectors and drinkers alike, it’s a quietly confident standout.
Haut-Bailly 2024
€67.20* In Bond per bottle
93-95 Points | Vinous - Antonio Galloni
The 2024 Haut-Bailly was picked from September 25 to October 4 and matured in 50% new oak, possibly with a shorter élevage. As usual, it deserves patience at this stage as it gradually opens and coheres with aeration. This has a perfumed bouquet built around redcurrant, cranberry and wild strawberry fruit. It's quite floral in style with finely delineated touches of freshly-rolled tobacco and wilted rose petal. The palate is creamy on the entry and velvety in texture, with finely chiseled, lace-like tannins. It is very well balanced with one of the few sensual vintages that you will find from this year. This will be much earlier drinking than other vintages, but that does not detract from what will be one of the most pleasurable 2024s to drink.
92-94 Points | Vinous - Neal Martin
The 2024 Haut-Bailly is an elegant, classy wine. Soft, sensual contours lend notable charm. The 2024 is an especially aromatic, perfumed Haut-Bailly. Its mid-weight structure is best described as Burgundian, for lack of a better term. Silky tannins frame it all in style. Readers should expect a decidedly understated, quiet Haut-Bailly.
19.5/20 Points | Matthew Jukes
Véronique Sanders’s nickname for the 2024 vintage is ‘Singing in the Rain’ – a red umbrella became the unofficial logo for this year! The humid, oceanic climate presented many challenges in 2024 at Haut-Bailly, and this is yet another elite estate that knuckled down and worked relentlessly in the vineyard, knowing that despite the trials and tribulations, it would all come good in the end. I encountered a rare sense of luxuriousness and textural silkiness in a handful of the finest wines in 2024, and Haut-Bailly is one such wine. I don’t often write the words ‘Bonnes-Mares’ about truly great Bordeaux, but there is more than a haunting, ethereal character about this wine that reminds me of the wilder, more densely packed Grand Cru wines from the Côte de Nuits. The perfume is heart-stopping, more complex and lifted than I can remember, and the fruit is mind-blowingly beautiful, combining levity and profound depth. Remarkably elongated and refined, there is an unhurried feel that promises the drinker everything will be revealed in the end, but in the meantime, layers of intrigue will be offered up metronomically over the coming decade. Every nuance will be worth waiting for. They will eventually combine to create a stunning landscape of glorious, velvety flavours detailed with roses, cherries and deeper, darker, wilder hedgerow notes. Formal tannins and louche acidity wait patiently until the last moment to greet you like long-lost friends, making 2024 Haut-Bailly an unmissable and uniquely compelling adventure.
*Prices are accurate as of the blog publication date and may be subject to change.