Wine Advisor
La Tour Carnet 2016
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2016 La Tour Carnet is a blend of 60% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc that was picked between 4 and 21 October. Matured in 30% new oak, it has more freshness and delineation than the Château des Grands Chênes that I tasted alongside, touches of blue fruit and floral scents lending it a Margaux-like personality. The palate is smooth and velvety on the entry with fine tannin, lush and precocious yet maintaining fine freshness and precision on the finish. Its texture is nigh irresistible. It is excellent, though will it surpass the 2015?
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2016 La Tour Carnet is fabulous. Rich, dense and voluptuous in the glass, the 2016 exudes intensity in every dimension. Sweet red cherry, tobacco, menthol, licorice, pomegranate and spice give the 2016 a decidedly exotic character that is hugely appealing.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2016 La Tour Carnet has a pretty, well-defined bouquet of blackberry, light cedar and pressed iris petal aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins. There is a little hardness here, and a foursquare finish implies that it has closed down since I last tasted it. A very fine La Tour Carnet. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting.
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 la Tour Carnet has an earthy nose with tobacco and underbrush over a core of warm plums, kirsch and tea. The medium-bodied palate is refreshing, elegant, juicy and soft with a savory finish.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Bernard Magrez's 2016 La Tour Carnet is ripe, open-knit and seductive. Super-ripe black cherry, plum, licorice, woodsmoke and tobacco are all beautifully delineated in the glass. A wine of striking inner perfume, sweetness and nuance, the 2016 Tour Carnet has all the elements to develop into a superb overachiever. Sweet, silky tannins add to the wine's considerable sexiness. This is the first vintage made in the new winery, where smaller tanks allowed for the separate vinification of multiple lots. The reduction in new oak is another big positive here. Bernard Magrez makes a number of terrific wines. La Tour Carnet is one of my favorites because of its budget friendly price and the way it ages in bottle. Tasted two times.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
A linear and pretty wine with plenty of blackberry aromas and flavors to complement a tight and chewy tannin structure. Medium to full body and a bright finish. More structured than the 2015.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
For a Haut-Médoc, this has an impressive depth of blackberry and blueberry character, together with a fine vanilla-oak note that beautifully complements the supple and finely nuanced, medium body. I love the crisp and delicately herbal, dry finish. A blend of 60% merlot, 37% cabernet sauvignon and 3% cabernet franc. Better from 2020.
About the Producer
The history of Château La Tour Carnet dates back to the 12th century. Indeed, this vast vineyard of 132 hectares is undoubtedly one of the oldest domains of the Medoc. Its architecture is purely medieval as evidenced by the tower, surrounded by moats, which was built in 1120. The domain takes its name from the valiant squire Carnet having fought alongside the lord Jean de Fait: his self-denial and his bravery were such that he received the property in inheritance. Subsequently, the estate belonged to illustrious owners, including the Montaigne family. Since the 2000s, Château La Tour Carnet has been taken over by Bernard Magrez, who has started a restoration and renovation program. Located in the heart of the Medoc, the property has a unique and exceptional terroir, called the “Butte de la Tour Carnet”. It is a visual curiosity but also geological since it is the only clay-limestone mound of the Medoc. The White of La Tour Carnet is one of the rare white wine produced in the Médoc. The estate also produces a white wine. Located in the heart of the Médoc, the property has a unique and exceptional terroir, called the “Butte de la Tour Carnet”. It is a visual curiosity but also geological since it is the only clay-limestone mound of the Medoc. The quality of Château La Tour Carnet’s wines is link to the quality of its terroir of Garonne and Pyrenean gravel. On this type of soil the Merlots flourish particularly well, which explains why half of the Château La Tour Carnet grape varieties are in Merlot. The dominant of this grape gives the wines of the property, a beautiful fruit, flexibility and allows to address them in their youth. During the vinification, the Château team seeks harmony between Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in order to have gourmet wines. Thus, the entire harvest is harvested by hand and then vinified in concrete vats for Merlot and in wooden vats for Cabernet Sauvignon. Aging is done in barrels, 50% new, for 18 months to coat and enhance the fruit. Château La Tour Carnet is a wine of great elegance, it is a great Médoc.
