Les Carmes Haut Brion 2015

Tasted blind. Dark crimson. Much juicier than most. Very alive and vibrant.Drink 2024-2040

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. (JH) 14.5%Drink 2020-2032

The 2015 is an interesting blend of 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and the balance Cabernet Sauvignon that saw a fair amount of whole clusters in the fermentation and 90% of the blend brought up in barrel and the rest in amphoras. Its deep purple color is followed by a beautiful perfumed of ripe currant and plums fruits, chocolate, ground herbs, and damp earth. With full-bodied richness, terrific ripeness, building tannin, and an underlying sense of elegance and purity that only grows with time in the glass, it needs 4-5 years of cellaring but is going to cruise in the cellar for 3-4 decades. 2022 - 2062

Spicy and fresh there is a lot happening on the nose and the start of the palate is bright. Rich ripe black cherry in the middle the fleshiness is balanced by freshness. The back palate tends to lack depth and the finish if firm and fresh.

This bijou property has way less Cabernet Sauvignon in its blend than its more famous FirstGrowth neighbour, but this certainly doesn’t lack structure or ageing potential in 2015. Mint,dried herbs and dense damson and blackcurrant fruit are supported by a frame of tannin andextract. Impressive stuff. Drink: 2025-35

Very tense and firm with energetic tannins lifting a lovely purple nose and bright black cherry fruit. There is a lot of oakhere, but it works. Nice and solid, but also long and well-balanced this is a powerful and calm Carmes.

The 2015 Les Carmes Haut-Brion has a beautiful bouquet with layers of red cherry, raspberry and cedar, a touch of cassis that emerges with time. This is a very sophisticated bouquet. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, wonderful structure and focus. This is precise but full of personality, the Cabernet Franc very expressive on the bell pepper-tinged finish. This is a very impressive Les Carmes Haut Brion with the substance to merit long-term cellaring (if you wish). This is definitely one to watch. Anticipated maturity: 2020 - 2045.

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 2026-2050.

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.

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