Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Black-cherry and berry aromas with hints of chocolate and red licorice. Medium to full body, integrated tannins and a polished and refined finish. A beauty. Hard not to drink now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2015 Haut Carles has compelling savory notions of smoked meats, sautéed herbs and truffles with a core of warm plums, pencil shavings and black olives. Medium-bodied with a taut, muscular core of youthful black fruits, it has a firm structure of ripe, grainy tannins and a long refreshing finish.
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Vinous
The 2015 Haut-Carles is plump, juicy and delicious. Inky blue/purplish fruit, lavender, chocolate, spice and licorice are front and center. Even with all of its intensity and raciness, the 2015 has quite a bit of supporting structure to balance things out. I would give it another year or so in bottle to allow the tannins to soften a bit further. Tasted two times.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Home of the very first remarkable Right Bank wines, dating back to the 1730s, Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac actually retained more fame than Pomerol well into the 19th century. Today these wines represent some of Bordeaux’s best hidden gems.
Fronsac is a very small region at an unusually high elevation compared to other Bordeaux appellations. Its vineyards unroll along the oak-dotted hills bordering the river’s edge, making it perhaps Bordeaux’s prettiest and most majestic countryside.
Merlot covers 60% of the vineyard acreage; the rest of the vines are Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Fronsac and Canon-Fronsac appellations are limited to the higher land where soils are predominantly limestone and sandstone. Lower vineyards along the Dordogne River mainly qualify for Bordeaux AOC status
The best Fronsac are deeply concentrated in ripe red and black berry; they have a solid mineral backbone and are rich and plush on the finish.