Les Carmes Haut Brion 2019

Les Carmes Haut-Brion 2019 has a deep garnet-purple color. It has a lifted nose of kirsch and redcurrant jelly, with hints of rose oil, Indian spices, and tobacco leaf. The medium-bodied palate is intense and spicy, with super-plush tannins and soft acidity, finishing with great length.

Rippling violet and peony waves alongside creamy blueberry and raspberry fruits, this is a gorgeous 2019 that continues a strong run of vintages at the estate. Slate-textured, salt-licked stones, rosemary and saffron-edged, white truffle spice. Takes its time and stretches out through the palate, tingling and enticing. Technical director Guillaume Pouthier has created something here that stands on its own, with complexity and nuance. Give it a full five or six years before opening. 3.59ph. 60% stems, and once again you see the difference it makes not only in nuance and philosophy but also in the actual physical properties of the wine.

Tasted blind. Solid, savoury. Not thrilling, but not too sweet. Lots of substance here. And masses of – too much? – tannin. Drying finish. 13.5%Drink 2029– 2043

42% Cabernet Franc, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot.Deepest crimson. Subtle aroma of mostly black but also red fruit, with a gentle fruit sweetness and a fine leafy freshness. Really fragrant as it opens. Lovely balance between the youthful but fine-grained tannins and the fresh, lively fruit. Plenty of freshness too. Cool, elegant and long. (JH) 13.3%Drink 2028 – 2038

I wasn't able to taste the 2019 Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion from barrel, but it certainly brings the goods from bottle. Deep ruby/purple-hued, with a smorgasbord-like array of red, blue, and black fruits as well as violets, candied flowers, tobacco, and sappy herbs, it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a deep, layered, concentrated mouthfeel, flawless balance, and that rare mix of power and elegance that truly great Pessac can deliver. Showing the more elegant style of the vintage, it checks in behind the magical, perfect 2018 but is very much in the style of the 2016. Readers will love having this beauty in the cellar, and it will evolve for 40-50 years if stored correctly. Hats off to winemaker Guillaume Pouthier for another thrilling wine.

The 2019 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is made from 50% Cabernet Franc, 34% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 16% Merlot, with 70% whole-bunch fermentation. It has undergone two years' aging in 90% new oak, and 10% amphorae. Deep garnet-purple colored, it slowly emerges from the glass to offer a powerful nose of pure cassis, fresh, juicy blackberries, and plum preserves with hints of pencil shavings, fallen leaves, crushed rocks, and rose petals, plus a hint of charcuterie. Medium-bodied, the palate really packs a punch of fruit, supported by fantastic tension and very firm, ripe, grainy tannins, finishing very long and layered. A tongue-tingling wine, it has lots of texture interest from grapes, stems, and oak.

Inky purple in colour, with peony and iris aromatics, then a whoosh of freshness that makes your mouth water before you are even halfway through. This is extremely impressive, well balanced, with fine tannins and real discretion but hidden power and depths. Clear floral character, with an austerity that makes you celebrate minerality. There are gourmet touches but the focus is rather on slate, rosemary and crushed stones with hints of chocolate shavings alongside the damson and blackberry fruit. 3.56pH, 80% in casks, 11% 20hl wood and 9% amphoras, 55% whole bunch fermentation (which brings the alcohol down to this relatively low level for the estate's location). A wine to surprise those who think Bordeaux can't deliver understatement. Tannin count of 82IPT. Drinking Window 2024 - 2044