2024 Les Carmes Haut Brion

Auslieferung bis zum Herbst 2027!
Delivery until Fall 2027!

Inky depths to the colour, touch of reduction on the opening as is often the case with En Primeur Carmes, this delivers energy, density, clarity. Austerity on the finish, but plenty of interest, savoury and muscular juicy black fruits, expect a wine that is built around about texture, architecture and savour, which is not something that I have found in many bottles in the vintage. 90% new oak, split between barrels and casks, 11% amphoras. Harvest 17 to 27 September. 3.61 pH, clay and limestone, 60 years old average vine age. 46hl/H yield in vineyard, 41hl/h after picking selection, then 24hl/h after cellar selection. All press used, no chaptilisation.
94/100 Jane Anson

(Pessac-Léognan; 48% Cabernet Franc (Bouchet) – 10% more than usual; 29% Cabernet Sauvignon; 23% Merlot; pH 3.61; aged in 70% new oak, 19% in vats of 30 hl and 25% in amphorae; whole bunch fermentation at 52%; a final yield of 24 hl/ha; 13.2% alcohol with no chaptalisation, picked at 13.9% and reduced with the whole bunch; tasted with Guillaume Pouthier at the property). I find this more like Cheval Blanc than ever before! The lowest ever proportion of Merlot in the final blend. A very long floraison of 3-4 weeks, with the biggest problem being the variation in the ripeness of the grapes within the bunches arising from coulure and millerandage. Densimetric sorting was crucial, with almost 40% of the harvested crop rejected (everything below 11.5% of potential alcohol). In the process a potential yield in the vineyard of 45 hl/ha was reduced at picking to 41 hl/ha, with just 24 hl/ha selected for vinification. The average age of vines is now 65 years. The density in the mid-palate is reinforced by the whole bunch fermentation. Instantly nutty. Walnuts and walnut oil. Iris. Peony. Peony bulb. Marjoram. Crushed and yet-to-be-crushed blueberries, a little black cherry too and that lovely authentic Cabernet Franc leafiness. That renders this very aerial but there is no mistaking the great gravitas and profundity too. This has a great vertical range which Guillaume Pouthier compares to a diamond shape in the mouth – though I find it less angular than that implies. Cedar and graphite, with more and more of the former with aeration. Saline, with even a touch of iodine. Succulent, intensely juicy and with a rare viscosity and density – this actually pushes the cheeks. The viscosity of the sapid finish produces almost the sensation of the transposing of the ‘tears’ in the glass to inside of one’s cheeks. Beautifully shaped and structured, lush and plush, plump and generous. Vintage transcendent and clearly the wine of the vintage in the appellation.
96-98/100 Colin Hay; The Drinks Business

Deep garnet-purple colored. Slowly unfurls to reveal classic Franc notes of red currant jelly, fresh blackberries, and pencil shavings, followed by hints of rose oil, fragrant soil, and crushed rocks. The light to medium-bodied palate shimmers with electric red and black berry flavors, framed by firm, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note. Nice!
95-97/100 Lisa Perrotti-Brown; The Wine Independent