2023 Les Carmes Haut Brion
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Tasting Notes
The 2023 Les Carmes Haut-Brion has almost identical analysis to the 2022, although it’s a totally different wine – something winemaker Guillaume Pouthier attributes to the longer growing season. With some sun damaged fruit and extensive sorting (they removed around 10% of the crop via density and optical sorting), he had to reduce the proportion of whole-bunch fermentation – needing perfect fruit, so it represents 60% of the blend this year. The resulting wine is intense and floral, with a sweetness to the cassis fruit. It’s full of dark, ripe, pure and vibrant fruit that vibrates at the core, wrapped in a creamy layer and polished, supple tannins, with a twist of freshness and a silken texture. Enchanting. Aged in 70% new oak, 10% amphora and the remaining 20% in larger old oak, with 13.5% alcohol and 3.62pH. Blend: 50% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot
Critic Scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Yohan Castaing, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
As to the Grand Vin 2023 Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion, this beauty checks in as 50% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 20% Merlot that was fermented with 60% whole cluster, brought up in 70% new barrels, with a good portion in foudre and amphora. It has a deep ruby/purple hue and vibrant aromatics of cassis and black cherries as well as leafy tobacco, spring flowers, woodsmoke, and graphite. Medium to full-bodied, it stays tight and compact on the palate, with a lively spine of acidity, beautiful precision and focus, ripe yet certainly present tannins, and outstanding length. It’s incredibly elegant, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this gain mid-palate density over the course of its élevage. It’s going to be long-lived.
Deep in color, the wine is equally deep, sporting nuances of blackberries, black cherries, flowers, blueberries, tar, herbs, and spices. On the palate, the wine is rich, full-bodied, supple, and deep. There is intensity, purity, length, and vibrancy. The wine is rich, and concentrated, yet, the cool part of the tasting is that the wine is also light on its feet. With all the obvious density, the wine never feels heavy. Although it is mouthcoating, its also elegant, leaving you with layers of crushed stones, herbs, and a wealth of ripe, sweet, dark fruits, with a touch of salty chocolate in the finish. The wine was made using 60% whole bunch clusters, blending 50% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Merlot, 13.5% ABV, pH 3.6. The wine is aging in a combination of 70% new, French oak, 20% foudres and 10% amphora. Picking took place September 11- September 23.
A blend of 50% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 20% Merlot, Les Carmes Haut-Brion 2023 has a pH of 3.62. It was fermented with 60% whole bunches and it is aging in 70% new oak barrels, 20% new oak vats of 18 hl, and 10% amphorae. It has an opaque purple-black color and needs a little swirling and coaxing to bring out fabulously pure, well-defined notes of juicy black cherries, blackcurrant pastilles, ripe juicy blackberries, and licorice, leading to hints of tar, peonies, wet slate, and black olives, with a touch of Sichuan pepper. The light to medium-bodied palate is airy and refreshing, with a solid backbone of very fine-grained, prancing tannins and bold freshness supporting the pristine black fruit flavors, finishing long and minerally. I had to spend a good 15 minutes with this wine to allow it to grow: it is incredibly tight to begin but expands to become something powerful. A beguiling 2023 with fully ripe black fruit characters and a paradoxical airiness, it really makes your head spin in the best possible way!
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About the producer
Ch. les Carmes Haut-Brion was originally part of the Ch. Haut-Brion property, up until the 16th Century (1584) when the owner donated the property to the Carmes monks who went on to manage the vineyards until the French Revolution.