"This is always an idiosyncratic wine. This year it’s stunning...97-98 points" (ZS) JamesSuckling.com
Released this morning for sale en primeur, 2024 Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion is offered at £354 per six bottles (down 22.4% on the '23) and receives 97-98 points from JamesSuckling.com. We think this is likely to be one of, if not the best value wines made in Bordeaux in 2024. Galloni's scores place only three wines higher in the vintage, and Neal Martin scores it the same as Mouton, Margaux and Latour, and higher than Haut-Brion itself!
Winemaker Guillaume Pouthier has an impressive, modernistic winery to work in, designed by Philippe Starck, and is one of very few Bordeaux winemakers we know of to use whole-bunch fermentation. Widely used in Burgundy, this method is usually seen as unsuited to the thicker skins and higher tannin levels of Bordeaux grape varieties, but Pouthier combines this with a gentle extraction (or 'infusion', another term more associated with burgundy) and ageing in a mix of oak barrels, vats, and amphorae.
As we said of Carmes Haut-Brion last year, finding innovative wines of brilliance like this one is what buying en primeur should be all about. We recommend adding 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion to your cellar.
Offered en primeur, on allocation. Landing spring 2027.
Magnums available with £20 ex-VAT bottling surcharge per six, please enquire for other formats.
All previous offers of 2024 Bordeaux can be found here.
Producer Profile
Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion
This small estate in Pessac-Léognan was once part of Haut-Brion itself. At around 10 hectares, the scale here is more akin to a right bank estate. The château was established over 400 years ago and was once owned by Carmelite monks, providing the name. Now privately owned, by property developer Patrice Pichet, the winemaker is Guillaume Pouthier. Pouthier previously worked with biodynamic wine guru, Michel Chapoutier.
| RED | 2024 | Château Les Carmes Haut Brion | 75cl | £354 per case of 6 | Château Les Carmes Haut Brion 2024 / / 75cl £354 per case of 6 |
IB | |||||
Tasting Notes"Inky depths to the colour, touch of reduction on the opening as is often the case with En Primeur Carmes, this delivers energy, density, clarity. Austerity on the finish, but plenty of interest, savoury and muscular juicy black fruits, expect a wine that is built around about texture, architecture and savour, which is not something that I have found in many bottles in the vintage. 90% new oak, split between barrels and casks, 11% amphoras. Harvest 17 to 27 September. 3.61 pH, clay and limestone, 60 years old average vine age. 46hl/H yield in vineyard, 41hl/h after picking selection, then 24hl/h after cellar selection. All press used, no chaptilisation. 94 points" janeanson.com------"One of the most impressive wines of the vintage, the 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is a striking effort that sets itself apart with seamless integration, even at this early stage, and a strong sense of identity. Poised, precise and unmistakably singular, it opens in the glass with a perfumed bouquet of iris, violet, dark berries, cherries, vine smoke and gentian. Medium to full-bodied, supple and notably fleshy for the vintage, it’s layered and textural, with a sappy, enveloping core of pure, vibrant fruit framed by finely grained, velvety tannins, culminating in a long, precise and gently stemmy finish. This is one of the rare wines of the vintage where sappiness is expressed with such finesse and charm, thanks in no small part to meticulous vineyard work and severe sorting in the winery. The blend is composed of 48% Cabernet Franc, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon and 23% Merlot, and it's maturing in a combination of 70% new oak, 19% foudres and 11% amphorae. 93-96 points" Yohan Castaing, RobertParker.com------"The 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion contains more Cabernet Franc at 48% of the blend. Picked between September 17 and 27 using 52% whole bunch, this is aged in 70% new barrels, 19% new foudres and 11% amphora. This has impressive fruit concentration on the nose with redcurrant and blackberry fruit, hints of cassis and a dab of dark chocolate. Fine delineation. After time, there is something that nods to the Northern Rhône without losing typicité. The palate is medium-bodied and fresh with fine tannins, a subtle pepperiness imparted by the whole bunches and a tingle of pain d'épices towards the finish. Very harmonious and very delicious, this should provide 20 to 25 years of drinking pleasure. 13.2% abv. 2031 - 2060. 94-96 points" Neal Martin, Vinous.com------"Deep garnet-purple colored. Slowly unfurls to reveal classic Franc notes of red currant jelly, fresh blackberries, and pencil shavings, followed by hints of rose oil, fragrant soil, and crushed rocks. The light to medium-bodied palate shimmers with electric red and black berry flavors, framed by firm, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note. Nice! 60-year-old vines on clay and limestone. 48% Cabernet Franc, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot. 52% whole bunches. pH 3.61. Aging 70% in new oak barriques, 19% in vats of 18 hl and 11% in amphorae. 95-97 points" Lisa Perotti-Brown, The Wine Independent------"Seamless and silky in the glass, with superb balance, the 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is one of the wines of the vintage. All the elements are so well balanced, always a sign of a superior vintage at this address. Floral notes, spice, leather and mocha run through a core of layered, beautifully persistent dark red fruit. Harvest took place between September 17 and 25, during one of the rare windows with little rain. As always, Les Carmes is done with a high percentage of stems (52%), specifically 100% for the Cabernet Franc, 50% for the Merlot and 20% for the Cabernet Sauvignon. Aging is 70% new oak barrels, 19% 18HL foudre and 11% amphora. New oak is already very nicely integrated, another sign of a superb vintage. The 2024 is a brilliant effort by the team led by Technical Director Olivier Pouthier. 2034 - 2054. 95-97 points" Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com------"This is always an idiosyncratic wine. This year it’s stunning, with a unique floral aspect and excellent depth of pure blue fruit, mulberries, dried herbs and white pepper. So juicy and mouthwatering on the palate, with a medium to full body and fine tannins. There is a crystalized mouthfeel, but the tannins are fresh and well knit. This is already delicious, which indicates its superb balance. 48% cabernet franc, 29% cabernet sauvignon and 23% merlot. points" Zekun Shuai, jamessuckling.com |
|||||||||||
YOU MUST BE 18 AND OVER TO PURCHASE AND CONSUME WINE AND ALCOHOL