Chateau La Tour Carnet Medoc 2018

Château La Tour Carnet, Quatrieme Grand Cru Classe, Haut Medoc, Bordeaux, France, 2018

Grapes: A blend of 59% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Petit Verdot, gravel/sand over clay/limestone soils,  Ageing 16 months in 33% new oak.

A very large estate of 176 acres of vineyards located in the commune of Saint-Laurent-Medoc.

Typically heavy Bernard Magrez bottle with tannins to match. Definitely one to soften and mature for up to a decade.

Producer Tasting Note:

Colour: An attractive, dark intensely-deep colour. Nose: The nose is fruity, powerful with a blackberry and blueberry dominance underlined by a touch of licorice. Palate: Dense right from the attack, smooth, fruity and full. The wine develops on the palate to express a good fleshy mouth-feel, firm yet silky tannins and a long flavoursome finish.

Critics' Tasting Notes:

"Barrel sample. Black with purple rim. Pure cassis on the nose, just a touch charry. Chewy but fresh and some freshness on the finish. The tannins are compact but they are balanced by the fruit core. (JH)"

15.5/20 points, Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com, April 2019

"Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 la Tour Carnet is a little closed and broody to begin, slowly unfurling to offer glimpses at notions of tar, star anise, damp soil and tapenade with a core of stewed plums and boysenberries, plus a waft of cassis. The medium-bodied palate has lovely freshness and bags of savory-laced black fruits framed by rounded tannins, finishing with a lively lift."

90/100 points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Advocate, March 2021