94-96
Galloni: "The 2021 Haut-Bages Libéral is one of the best wines I have ever tasted from Claire Lurton. Dense, powerful and explosive, with dazzling intensity HautBages Libéral races across the palate, offering up an enticing mélange of ripe red-fleshed fruit, blood orange, cedar and spice. Bright acids lend vibrancy throughout a Pauillac I won't soon forget tasting. Haut-Bages Libéral is one of my early favorites on the Left Bank in 2021. Yields were 30 hectoliters per hectare versus the more typical 40 or so, not a bad result at all for the year given the biodynamic farming practices in place."
94-95
Suckling: "This is already open and delicious with cherry, cassis, blueberry and chocolate-orange character. Some peach notes, too. Medium to full body with velvety, ripe and plush tannins. Caressing, yet it remains firm and solid. Lovely, creamy finish. 90% cabernet sauvignon and 10% merlot. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification."
17,5+
Weinwisser: "90 % Cabernet, 10 % Merlot, 30 hl/ha. Feingliedriges Bouquet, rote Pflaume, Heidelbeergelee, Veilchen, weißer Pfeffer und Lakritze. Am geradlinigen Gaumen mit straffer Ausrichtung, fein spröder Textur, engmaschigem Tanninkorsett und sehnigem Körper. Im konzentrierten Finale blaubeerige Konturen, edler Kreideton, der dem Pauillac eine ungeheure Eleganz verleiht, kann noch zulegen."
18
Vinum: "Zurückhaltend würzige, viel versprechende Aromatik; Herrlich fruchtiger Auftakt, saftig und wuchtig zugleich, dank der Rasse, nicht der Fülle, mineralisches Tannin, das für grosse Länge sorgt; superb."
93
Decanter: "Very aromatic on the nose, this has savoury, fruit and floral tones; liquorice, cola and earth with cranberries, strawberries and black cherries. Dense and quite darkly fruited on the palate but with a brightness from the acidity giving a mouthwatering attack before the flavours deepen and widen in the mouth. So many layers, really showing the Pauillac power: everything presented in high definition with a bold structure even though the individual elements are so precise and defined. It's racy and confident but also complex with a spiced cedar, clove, cinnamon, liquorice and wet stone/ chalky element to the tannins that fill the mouth and don't let go. A lovely wine with lots of potential from Claire Villars-Lurton!"
91-93
Wine Advocate: "Containing fully 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Haut-Bages-Libéral offers up aromas of rich berries, plums, loamy soil, licorice and spices. Medium to full-bodied, lively and youthfully primary, with lively acids and powdery tannins that assert themselves on the finish, I suspect it will flesh out nicely with élevage to number among the sleepers of the vintage. "
92
Falstaff: "Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Schwarze Waldbeeren, reife Zwetschken, mit dezenter roter Frucht unterlegt, ein Hauch von frischen Orangenzesten. Saftig, süß, zart nussige Aromen, gut integrierte Tannine, gute Frische, dunkles Nougat, mineralisch im Abgang, salzig-zitronige Note im Nachhall, hat Substanz."
90-92
Neal Martin: "The 2021 Haut-Bages Libéral contains the highest percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon ever, the Merlot having been affected by the mildew. Matured in 40% new oak, 40% one-year-old barrels and 20% amphorae, this is curiously Margaux-like, almost more than Durfort-Vivens! Floral and elegant, opening nicely with aeration without pushing the accelerator hard. The palate is medium-bodied and very smooth in texture, maybe just needing a little more tension, but there is decent weight and a cohesive, chalky finish. Very fine, though I lean more toward the Durfort-Vivens this year."
90-92
Wine Cellar Insider: "Flowers and tobacco leaf accompany the bright red fruits on the nose and palate. Medium-bodied, with softness as well as sweetness in the fresh red currants on the palate, and a touch of refreshing spearmint in the finish. The wine will be easy to enjoy just about on release. The wine was produced from a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. This represents the highest percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend in the history of the estate, 13.2% ABV. Drink from 2024-2039."
