2024, Château Haut-Batailley, PAUILLAC, 5ème Grand Cru ClasséBordeaux Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot. The 2024 Haut Batailley races across the palate with masses of dark fruit, menthol, liquorice, espresso and dried herbs. Floral overtones reappear on the finish, adding a refined touch. Powerful yet polished, the 2024 is quite impressive. This feels a bit less extracted than the first vintages under the leadership of the Cazes family, not a bad thing at all in my view. Very fine. Tasted two

deep and impressively concentrated

united in a whole that's more than the sum of its parts

Great precision and laser-like focus

citrus fruit is more to the fore here with plenty of acidity suggesting the wine needs several years in bottle before opening

Stricter finishing – that’s nice – and it’s long too

graphite and violets

crushed strawberry fruit and fine tannins

At least some patience will be required for his very good Morey villages

Lignier's 2022 Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Faconnières is one of the highlights of the range

dark and serious no doubt

with fine tannins and a savoury quality to the fruit that makes it so drinkable

Fleeting touches of chamomile and quince emerge toward the finish