Château Haut-Batailley Pauillac 2016

Château Haut-Batailley has been a family affair for most the 20th century. The vineyard was created in 1942 when Château Batailley was divided into two separate properties for the two Borie brothers. François Borie kept the smaller part of the Medoc vineyard which became Haut-Batailley. Château Batailley went to his brother, Marcel Borie. François Borie was able to enlarge the size of the Haut-Batailley vineyards, due to the purchase of an additional 15 hectares of vines from Château Duhart-Milon in 1951. In 1953, after François Borie passed away, his daughter Françoise de Brest-Borie inherited Haut-Batailley. She asked her brother Jean-Eugene Borie to manage the estate for the family. Following in his father’s footsteps, his son François-Xavier Borie took charge.

Along with the help of his daughter, Emeline Borie, they continued managing the property for years. In 2006, Francois Xavier Borie began a renovation and modernization of the wine-making facilities and cellars. This allowed Château Haut-Batailley to begin doing parcel by parcel vinification. This was a huge change for the estate. To understand how important this renovation was, you have to keep in mind that there is no actual chateau at the vineyard. Until the 1970s, the wines were made at another Borie family-owned estate, the famed Château Ducru-Beaucaillou in Saint Julien. Once the wines were vinified, they were moved to Haut Batailley for barrel aging.

Château Batailley was ably managed by the Francois Xavier Borie Family who also own Château Grand Puy Lacoste until 2017. Things changed at the property in 2017 when the Cazes family, of neighboring Château Lynch Bages purchased the vineyard from Françoise Des Brest. The sale caused some issues as François Xavier Borie, who had just finished making the 2016 vintage, was also interested in purchasing the vineyard. Jean Charles Cazes took control of the estate in 2017. While he’ll be responsible for selling the previous vintage, 2017 will be the first harvest the Cazes family will be completely responsible for.

The first change at the château was a facelift. The previously drab, sandy walls were painted bright pink. Now, you can see the château all the way from Saint Julien! The next step was cultivating 16 additional hectares of vines. 2 more hectares were planted in 2020. A needed renovation of the cellars is also underway. The best vintages for Chateau Haut Batailley are: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2006, 2005 and 2000.