Verso is the new second wine of Chateau Haut-Batailley, launched with the 2017 vintage after the Cazes family of Lynch-Bages took over the estate in 2017. The Cazes team has nearly doubled the planted vineyard area, replanting Pauillac land that had sat fallow since phylloxera. Verso is the declassification vehicle for younger vines and parcels not destined for the grand vin, but it carries the same fingerprint: dark fruit, graphite, the firm spine that defines this commune. 2018 was a warm, ripe Left Bank vintage, and that shows in the generous mid-palate. A genuine baby Pauillac at a fraction of the cost.