Château Haut-Batailley, Haut-Batailley, Bordeaux, AOC, dry, red

While bud break was once again particularly early, the cool weather conditions which followed significantly delayed the vegetative cycle. In terms of weather conditions, 2021 was quite a challenging vintage! The rainfall episodes during flowering strongly reduced the quantitative harvest potential and the cool temperatures which followed slowed down the grapes’ ripening process that seemed at the time difficult to reach… Luckily, by the end of September the sun came back in time for the grapes to reach optimal ripeness and concentration. As expected, yields were low, but they were key to getting perfect maturity. Picking began on 27 September. The Merlot was harvested over five days, and the Cabernet for seven days, until 9 October. A first sorting took place in the vineyard, before taking the harvest in 200 kg crates to the winery. A second and third sorting took place, before and after de-stemming. All grapes were harvested exclusively by hand. Vatting took place over a period of three weeks, with successive cycles of pumping over and “rack and return”. Following running off, malolactic fermentation began in vats and the wine started its 16-month ageing in oak barrels.