Château Haut-Brion
The only First Growth outside the Médoc, a Pessac-Léognan estate near the city of Bordeaux with nearly 500 years of history, owned by the Dillon family since 1935.
About Château
Château Haut-Brion is the oldest of the great Bordeaux estates and the only Premier Grand Cru Classé located outside the Médoc, sitting in Pessac just beyond the city of Bordeaux. Its origins trace to 1525, when Jean de Pontac married into the Haut-Brion land, with manorial rights acquired in 1533. It was already famous by the 17th century — Samuel Pepys recorded drinking 'Ho Bryan' in 1663. Since 1935 it has been owned by Domaine Clarence Dillon, founded by American banker Clarence Dillon; the company is led today by Prince Robert of Luxembourg, who became Président Directeur Général in 2008. Uniquely among the First Growths, Haut-Brion's gravelly terroir gives reds with a distinctive warm, earthy, smoky character, and the estate also makes a tiny quantity of highly prized dry white. The second wine is Le Clarence de Haut-Brion.
Flagship wines
- Château Haut-Brion (red grand vin)
- Château Haut-Brion Blanc (white)
- Le Clarence de Haut-Brion (second wine)
Editorial notes
The white is rare and expensive — produced in tiny volumes. Reds show a recognizable smoky, gravelly signature and cellar for decades.