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CHÂTEAU LA MISSION HAUT-BRION

The Château  |  The Architectural Model  |  The Wine Cabinet

History

The origins of Château La Mission Haut-Brion are rooted in the Congregation of the Mission, a group that acquired the estate in 1664 through the descendants of Madame de Lestonnac. The Fathers of the Congregation, which was founded in the 17th century by Saint Vincent de Paul, were experts in selecting appropriate varieties for the terroir. For over 130 years, they produced wines that were acknowledged worldwide to be some of the best in Bordeaux. The French nobleman Marshal de Richelieu was such an admirer, he was once quoted as saying, “If God forbade drinking, would he have made such good wine?”

This period of prosperity came to an abrupt end with the French Revolution – the monks were dispossessed and the estate was subsequently auctioned off. It was not until 1919 when the property was acquired by Frederic Woltner that the wines began to regain their ascendancy alongside the First Growths. A pioneer of such winery practices as the use of the glass-lined fermentation tanks that he installed in 1926, it was Woltner’s passion which propelled the Château into the modern era.

Familial disputes in later generations led to the sale of the property in 1983 to Domaine Clarence Dillon, who have also owned Château Haut-Brion since 1935. The two estates are currently represented by Prince Robert of Luxembourg and are managed by Jean-Philippe Delmas. Together, they have continued to renovate extensively, both with new chais completed in 1987, bottling lines updated in 1996, and recently, in 2007, with the construction of new tasting rooms and cellars.

Classed as a Grand Cru under the Graves classification of 1953, La Mission is situated directly across the road from Haut-Brion. Often the two properties are (wrongly) coupled in the same bracket. The common misconception being that La Mission is a second label of Haut-Brion. However, with their unique terroirs and individual viticultural and blending practices the wines produced are quite distinctive. The common factor that the two Châteaux share is the high quality of the wines produced, and many argue that Château La Mission Haut-Brion should in fact be re-classified as a First Growth.

Order top vintages of Château La Mission Haut-Brion