1997
La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion
Tasting notes
Clean nose, with pronounced oak flavors together with subtle
green pepper notes cradled by a gentle softness in the background.
The wine has lovely fruit concentration, good longevity
on the palate as well as excellent balance and offers complex panoply
of aromas bringing together myriad fruits and spices with more prominent cinnamon notes.
Slight bitterness on the finish but with a creamy and soft texture.
Grapes not having reached optimum ripeness leave their mark on
this wine but its well-structured tannins should allow for
excellent maturation over the next five to ten years.
The weather
A hot, dry start to the year led to exceptionally early growth in the spring. There was unprecedented flowering on the vines at the end of April. At the beginning of May, showers delayed the end of flowering by more than a month. The September drought made for a trouble-free harvest and compensated for the uneven ripening.
A few figures
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Harvest Dates
From the 3rd to the 25th of September
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Blend
Merlot: 63 %
Cabernet Sauvignon: 32 %
Cabernet Franc: 5 % -
New barrels
25 %
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Alcohol
12.5 %
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Bottling date
From the 6th to the 10th of May 1999
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