The 2018 vintage in Haut-Médoc
Vintage character: After a spring marked by mildew, the heat concentrated a small crop: rich, ripe wines with great depth of material.
Overall reading of the year’s season across Haut-Médoc. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.
The vintage
Harvest: Merlot from 25 September to 10 October; Cabernet from 5 to 15 October.
Blend of the 2018 vintage
- 60 % Merlot
- 40 % Cabernet-sauvignon
Shares for this vintage, as recorded on the 2018 technical sheet. The vineyard itself is planted with 59 % merlot, 35.5 % cabernet sauvignon, 4 % petit verdot, 1.5 % cabernet franc, bordeaux 2050 — a vintage blend departs from the area under vine as the year dictates.
Figures from the 2018 sheet
- 32 yrsVine age
Winemaking
Primary sorting on the vine. Manual sorting on a vibrating table before and after destemming, using a Pellenc WINERY. Each grape sorted by density. The grapes are cooled in a cryogenic tunnel (by spraying liquid nitrogen). Gravity-fed into tanks through a wide tank funnel. Small cement and wooden tanks. Cold pre-ferment maceration (8°C). Fully manual crushing. Low-temperature alcoholic fermentation (28°C). Maceration from 25 to 32 days. Bottling: spring 2020. Consultant oenologist: Michel Rolland.
Ageing
Ageing in barrels for 16 months, of which 30% are new.
Terroir
Saint Laurent Médoc. Clay and chalk-heavy subsoil below a thick layer of Gunzian gravel.
An offer on Château La Tour Carnet 2018
Availability, allocations and terms: the Compagnie Médocaine will reply promptly. The estate and vintage are already filled in in the message.