Wine Advocate
The 2020 Les Carmes Haut-Brion has turned out beautifully, wafting from the glass with aromas of blackberries, red fruits, exotic spices, rose petals, raw cocoa and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and layered, it's intensely flavored but weightless, with a compelling sense of harmony and a long, orange-inflected finish. A blend of 52% Cabernet Franc, 26% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Merlot, it was vinified with some 65% whole bunch and attained 13.5% alcohol. This is the first vintage where Pouthier's methods (whole bunch with weighted cap and long élevage incorporating larger vessels) were applied writ large, and the results are striking.
James Suckling
Gorgeous aromas of crushed berries with orange peel. Fresh spices. Flowers. Salty. Full and so bright and vivid, with an elegance and beauty at the beginning and then it goes on and on. You see the intense fine tannins at the end. Dusty and bright. Unique wine. 55% whole cluster. 80% new wood, 10% amphora, and 10% foudra.
Antonio Galloni
The 2020 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is a total stunner. For the first time I can remember, Les Carmes Haut-Brion marries all of its elements so well that nothing stands out. In the past, the high percentage of Franc and/or the whole clusters were evident. The 2020 is the first modern vintage in which all the elements are so well balanced. Dark red/purplish fruit, rose petal, mint, lavender, dried herbs and incense all build in a ravishing Pessac-Léognan that will take your breath away. The 2020 is 40% Cabernet Franc, 34% Cabernet Sauvignon and 26% Merlot, picked between September 14 to 26, which is early here. Whole cluster was 55%. Vinification took place over five weeks, using very gentle extraction, with no pumpovers or punchdowns. Aging was 80% new oak, 11% 18hL foudres and 9% amphorae. In tasting, the 2020 is simply magnificent. There are no soloists, just the most exceptionally vivid, breathtaking orchestra imaginable. The 2020 is a masterpiece from Technical Director Guillaume Pouthier and his team. Don't miss it!
Jeff Leve
Medium/full-bodied, concentrated, vibrant, fresh, refined, elegant, and completely focused on its purity of fruit. Initially, you find notes of flowers, tobacco leaves, thyme, red pit fruits, mint, and an array of spices. The fruit gracefully unfolds on your palate with nuances of sea salt, herbs, spices, red, and black currants, cocoa, and espresso. The long, seamless, vivacious finish, with its spicy, mint, and oceanic edge takes its time building in intensity and width as it lingers. Drink from 2027-2060.
Verantwortlicher Lebensmittelunternehmer:
Chateau Les Carmes Haut Brion | 20 Rue des Carmes | 33000 Bordeaux | Frankreich
Weitere Informationen über das Weingut Chateau Les Carmes Haut Brion
Die zehn Hektar Land bestehen aus Kies, Lehm und Sand. In dieser einzigartigen geologischen Palette leitet die Affinität zum Land die Mischung der gepflanzten Rebsorten Cabernet Franc (42%) und Cabernet Sauvignon (18%) betrachten sich von beiden Seiten des Baches aus mit Merlot ( 41%) wachsen etwas weiter weg. Dieses Pflanzenmosaik verleiht dem Anwesen sein ungewöhnliches Profil. 1584 schenkte Jean de Pontac, der Herr von Haut-Brion, mehrere Hektar Wiesen und Reben dem Karmeliterorden. Zweifellos hatte diese Gunstbezeugung eine Prädestination zur Folge: Die Mitglieder der Kongregation hatten ihren Namen vom Berg Karmel, was wörtlich „Gottes Weinberg“ bedeutet. Sie pflegten das Land fast zwei Jahrhunderte lang und zeigten die gleiche Hingabe sowohl bei der Buße als auch bei der Weinproduktion. Unter der klassischen Eleganz von Pessac-Léognan hat der Spitzenwein Carmes eine eigene Nische geschaffen. Beispiellose Anteile von Cabernet Franc bieten eine seidige Kraft, die durch die Intensität von Cabernet Sauvignon unterstützt wird. In dieser Struktur entwickelt Merlot eine abgerundete und verfeinerte Fruchtigkeit: Gleichgewicht ist an der Tagesordnung und sorgt für einen Stil, der gleichermaßen komplex und köstlich ist.
