Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion 2016 Pessac-Léognan

Yves Beck 100 points www.yvesbeck.wine 41% Cabernet Franc, 39% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc Garnet red with purple hues. Power and finesse! This is my maxim that I use when I feel that a wine is capable of combining finesse and power, but usually it is at the gustatory level that this happens. Carmes Haut Brion is already doing it on the nose! The complexity is amazing in its style with a perfect cohabitation between the numerous components of the bouquet. Whether on the mineral level, with graphite, or on the fruity level with notes of blackcurrant, redcurrant, cherry, tea leaves but, and this is a crucial point, also freshness, even vegetal notes, but ripe vegetal notes! If I sum up my introduction, the nose of this wine is simply perfect. From every point of view. It is powerful, complex, fine, authentic, marked by the terroir and by the team that raised it. Even the hints of ageing are relegated to the rank of olfactory assistant while the rest of the elements direct the operations. The palate is, and it is hardly possible to expect anything else, exceptional. It is precise, clear and to the point. It is surprisingly racy from the start and it is the acidity that has the upper hand on the body. The tannins are compact, powerful and of a rare finesse. The tannins are compact, powerful and of a rare finesse. They develop very slowly and reflect well the aptitudes of the nose, i.e. to rally power, finesse and race. The wine is of a rare perfection and yet, it still has potential to exploit, some details to settle, but considering what it shows now we can already assume that it will exceed many expectations. With this in mind, it is with undisguised emotion that I give it the maximum. However, we will have to find a solution for 2018. 2026-2066 (at least) 100/100