C des Carmes, 2023
The 2023 C des Carmes offers vibrant fruit with latent power: red cherry, redcurrant and kirsch lead the way, with impressive concentration balanced by freshness and a savoury note of bramble. Wet stone and oyster-shell salinity add another dimension, while gorgeous powdery tannins lend finesse to the finish.
critic reviews
The 2023 Le C des Carmes Haut-Brion was picked from September 20 to October 5 and includes 25% whole bunch, with 13% alcohol due to their addition. This comes from the osmotic absorption of alcohol in the vat, according to Guillaume Pouthier. Matured in 20% new oak with 10% in amphora, it has a very pure and airy bouquet of black cherries commingling with blueberry and light pressed-violet aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with cashmere tannins. It’s very smooth with white pepper infusing the red fruit, but it’s perhaps just missing a little grip toward the finish. This seems to just glide, and it will drink after just a couple of years in bottle.
The 2023 Le C des Carmes Haut-Brion is a terrific vintage wine bursting in the glass with pure, fresh and complex aromas of mulberries, cassis, violet and dark wild berries. Medium to full-bodied, creamy and seamless, its fleshy core of fruit is framed by bright acids a d supple tannins. This blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot is the most accomplished C de Carmes to date. It's maturing 10% in amphorae and the rest in foudres of 50 hectoliters.