C des Carmes Haut Brion 2018

This show so much effusive ripe fruit with cherries and strawberries. Lightly jammy. Full-bodied and slightly chewy, yet with so much fruit and brightness. Delicious now, but give it two or three years to open. Second wine of Carmes. Try after 2023.

The 2018 Le C des Carmes Haut-Brion contains 30% whole bunches and spent two years in barrel (30% new) and the third year in concrete vat before release. It has a clearly delineated bouquet: brambly black fruit, incense and wild hawthorn. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, harmonious though not deep. Certainly a light style given the vintage, this feels fresh, slightly Bandol-like in a pleasurable way with quite a persistent finish. Very drinkable. Tasted at the Les Carmes Haut-Brion vertical at the château.

The 2018 Le C des Carmes Haut-Brion is blended of 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot. It includes 25% whole cluster, has 13.6% alcohol and is anticipated to age 18-24 months in barriques, 30% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it is a little reduced to begin, opening out to pretty notions of roses, cinnamon stick and black pepper over a core of Black Forest cake, licorice, tar, warm cassis and chargrill. Medium-bodied, the palate is tightly wound with firm, ripe, chunky tannins and lovely freshness with saline and mineral sparks coming through on the long, vibrant finish.