Château Les Carmes Haut Brion - Pessac-Léognan 2015

Jancis Robinson

16,5 / 20

par Julia Harding MW le 08/11/2017

Deep crimson. Smells riper than the Pessacs and Graves tasted so far but still pure dark fruit. Savoury, dry and elegant, more length than depth at the moment and less fruit depth than I expected from the nose, but I think it will flesh out in the bottle

Vinifera

5 / 5

le 31/05/2016

Une nouvelle fois, c’est l’un des grands vins du millésime. Profondeur de saveur, fraîcheur de la trame, tanin merveilleusement épicé et grande finale expansive. Superbe vin !

Decanter.com

95 / 100

par Jane Anson le 02/05/2016

The highest proportion of Cabernet Franc on the Left Bank at 45%, with just over 1ha of ungrafted vines more than 80 years old. Additional 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot. Light touch and great concentration for the future. There’s body, movement and energy to the dark cassis fruit, 70% aged in new oak, 30% in clay amphora. Stéphane Derenoncourt oversees an increasing move to biodynamic farming. One of the best ever wines produced here; an estate to watch. 3.7pH, 14.1%abv.2023-2038

The Wine Cellar Insider

94-96 / 100

par Jeff Leve le 30/04/2016

Minerals, flowers, sweet, ripe berries, forest floor and tobacco scents create the perfume. This wine is soft, silky and smooth with a long finish. The tannins are powerful, elegant, sophisticated and express more of a refined, saline quality in this vintage than in previous years. This wine should age extremely well with little effort. Using 45% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and vinified with 45% of the stems still intact, the wine reached 14.02% Alcohol with a pH of 3.7. 90% of the wine is aging in 100% new, French oak barrels and the remainder is aging in amphora.

Bettane & Desseauve

18 / 20

le 28/04/2016

Solide, profond, intense. Grand vin d’une profondeur aromatique sans guère d’équivalent à Bordeaux. Vin hors classe et hors norme dans ce millésime, d’une intensité et d’une vigueur aromatique qui rappellent plus les grands crus de la côte de Nuits que le style bordelais classique. Difficile de résister à la somptuosité de la matière et à sa persistance.

Vinous

90-93 / 100

par Antonio Galloni le 27/04/2016

Once again, Les Carmes Haut-Brion stakes its place as one of the most distinctive wines being made in Bordeaux. The 2015 exudes richness, power and intensity. Layers of dark red stone fruit, cedar, tobacco, smoke and pomegranate build as the wine shows off its voluptuous personality. Les Carmes Haut-Brion stands out for many reasons, including its high percentage of Cabernet Franc, which is unusual in Pessac. In 2015, winemaker Guillaume Poutier also added a dollop of whole clusters to give the wine more aromatic lift. The use of whole clusters is of course quite common in Burgundy and the Rhône (were Poutier formerly made the wines at Chapoutier), but is very rarely seen in Bordeaux. This full-throttle Pessac will drink well for decades, but it also needs time to shed some of its considerable baby fat. The blend is 44% Cabernet Franc, 32% Merlot and 24% Cabernet Sauvignon. Simon Blanchard is the consulting winemaker. Tasted three times.

Jancis Robinson

16 /

par Jancis Robinson le 26/04/2016

A Stéphane Derenoncourt wine. Dark crimson. Sweet and thick. Not really enough lift and drive. Not obviously a Graves. Too heavy. Drink 2023-2035

timatkin.com

93 / 100

par Tim Atkin MW le 20/04/2016

René Gabriel

19 / 20

le 10/04/2016

Extrem dunkles Purpur mit lila und violetten Reflexen. Das Bouquet ist fast nur schwarzbeerig, dunkles Malz, Pumpernickel, Rauch, Amarenakirschen, exotische Hölzer und Korinthen, sehr tiefgründig. Im Gaumen ein Ausbund von Süsse, geschmeidiger, dicht gebündelter Körper, geniale Länge mit viel Cabernetwürze. Das Weingut beweist auch hier wieder seinen exorbitanten Höhenflug seit dem Besitzerwechsel. A Must Buy! Die hohe Punktezahl ist die gute Nachricht. Die schlechte; die Ernte ist extrem klein. Es liegt momentan 30 % weniger im Keller. Produktion total: 24'000 Flaschen. 19/20 2024 – 2044

Jamessuckling.com

96-97 / 100

par James Suckling le 05/04/2016

This shows incredible texture with the finest velvet mouthfeel. Super character of chocolate, walnut and orange peel. Great length and subtlety. Lots of whole berry fermentation and maceration gives the wine grace and fruit. Then it kicks in. Great power and structure at the end. Very unique. 45% cabernet franc, 25% cabernet sauvignon and 30% merlot. 30,000 bottles made.

Wine Spectator

92-95 / 100

par James Molesworth le 03/04/2016

Deliciously pure and velvety, with plum and blackberry sauce notes gliding along, enhanced by black tea and anise accents. Seductive in feel.—J.M.

Wine Advocate

92-94 / 100

par Neal Martin

The 2015 Les Carmes Haut Brion is a blend of 30% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Franc and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon that was cropped at 25 hl/ha between 24 September and 11 October. This vintage includes around 45% whole cluster fruit and it went through a four-week ferment with just one pump-over and one pigeage, using a bladder inside the tank to submerge the cap (like an infusion tea). It is aged 10% in clay amphora and 90% in oak barrels, which includes 20% in Stockinger barrels, around 60% new wood. The alcohol degree is 14% and a pH of 3.7. "This vintage is very sensual because of the softness of tannin. I think it is very typical of Pessac," ex-Chapoutier winemaker Guillaume Pouthier told me. The nascent wine is inky purple in color. The nose is very closed and demands a lot of coaxing from the glass, reluctantly giving up black cherries, cassis and iodine scents. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannin, extremely pure, hints of black olive and Japanese nori infusing the black fruit. It has a very fine structure with good grip on the finish. The Cabernet Franc comes through strongly here, defining the start and finish and in some ways, it needs the Merlot to become more expressive to "fill in the gaps." Of course, that is precisely what élevage is for. This is an intriguing Pessac-Léognan that reminds me of Pomerol (Lafleur perhaps?). Difficult to judge now, I look forward to retasting this once in bottle, because it may well deserve a higher score. Drink 2025-2050