Maison Louis Latour Tasting with Louis-Fabrice Latour

Maison Louis Latour & American Sommelier hosted a tasting featuring the 2016 line up. The tasting was hosted by Louis-Fabrice, who walked us through each wine as we tasted. A really well run event that provided the opportunity to get a better understanding of the domain and to taste through the 2016 offerings.

Louis-Fabrice discussed how 2016 was one of the most challenging growing seasons on record having to contend with hail/frost and mildew. Yields were down substantially across burgundy so prices will be up. The cooler season resulted in wines that are a bit less full bodied than the warm 2015 , but more lean and focused wines should age very well due to the higher acidity.

We tasted wines from three different portfolios: Simonet-Febvre their Chablis property, Louis Latour and Henry Fessy in Beaujolais.

• NV Simonnet-Febvre Crémant de Bourgogne Brut 85 Points

  France, Burgundy, Crémant de Bourgogne

  Nose of toast and golden apple. Bubbles are quite fine and not very assertive. Tastes of golden toast, honey with apples, medium acidity and a hint of bitterness like lemon or grapefruit pith. The bitterness on the back palate keeps me from enjoying this more.

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• 2016 Simonnet-Febvre Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru

  Color is a vey pale yellow. Nose of burnt matchstick, apples & lemon - very fragrant. On the palate this has a rich mouthfeel but it is simultaneously quite crisp with wet stones on the finish and a hint of salinity. I enjoyed this - need to start drinking more chablis.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Mâcon-Lugny 85 Points

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Mâcon-Lugny

  Color is very pale yellow. The nose here is really muted - not displaying much of anything. Tastes very soft in the mouth, golden apples, mild acidity - not really very distinctive.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Montagny 1er Cru La Grande Roche Blanc 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte Chalonnaise, Montagny 1er Cru

  Color is clear pale yellow. Soft aromas of apple and pear on the nose. On the palate this is bright & snappy, with lemony citrus and good minerality on the finish. Good QPR here for a nice house chardonnay in a crisp style. Quite nice.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Pouilly-Fuissé 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Mâconnais, Pouilly-Fuissé

  Nose on this is quite pretty - very floral. The palate is bright acidity (tart green apple), white flowers and lots of minerals. Lean and racy - this wine really wants to be paired with food.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Chardonnay Grand Ardèche 88 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côteaux de l'Ardèche

  Color leaning more to clear pale gold. The nose here is richer and more buttery than the previous wines due to the 10 mo aging in oak (20% new). On the palate this has a richer, fatter mouthfeel with some of the oiliness I associate with white Rhone wines. If you enjoy new world Chard - this might be one to experiment with due to the more opulent style and reasonable price point.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Meursault 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  Color is clear pale yellow. Nose is fragrant with white flowers and a touch of burnt match- very pretty. The palate here is a bit richer than the Macon-Lugny, Montagny and Pouilly Fuisse - but not nearly as full as the Grand Ardeche. Tastes of golden apples with bright lemony acidity and florals - very silky mouthfeel.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Puligny-Montrachet 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet

  Nose on this one jumps out of the glass with lemon and burnt match- lovely! The palate has a very silky mouthfeel, lots of tension here here with lemony acids, a hint of pith, and then crushed rock. Would be better with food as it is more lean than rich in style.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Sous le Puits 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

  Color is pale gold. Very pretty nose of matchstick and white flowers. The palate here is richer and more concentrated - more depth of flavor and viscous on the tongue. Tastes of apples, lemon with again a touch of that grapefruit pitch and then wet stones on the finish. Still very young - but quite lovely.

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• 2015 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Color is golden yellow. Nose of burned match and buttery apple pie. The palate is rich and full bodied - (really notice the progression from the village to the 1er cru to the grand cru here). This has a luxe and unctuous mouthfeel but kept in balance with bright acidity. The oak toast is still a hint noticeable, but this should integrate given some cellar time. Really enjoyable.

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• 2010 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Color is clear and golden - darkest of all the whites tasted today. Side by side with the '15 - the nose is much more muted here - similar aromatics (burned match, apples and buttery pastry) but far more subdued. On the palate this is a bit more elegant than the '15, not quite as rich, but it also is less demonstrative so for me a hair less enjoyable.

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• 2016 Henry Fessy Régnié Château des Reyssiers 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Régnié

  Color is bright ruby. The nose has a bit of that cotton candy jammy aroma - that I often get from gamay. The palate though is not jammy at all, more soft and well integrated with tart cherry and lots of earth. Very easy to drink - enjoyable.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Pinot Noir Les Pierres Dorees 86 Points

  France, Burgundy, Coteaux Bourguignons

  Pinot Noir grown in Beaujolais - 7 year old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in stainless. Nose has a bit of barnyard and cherries. On the palate, this is soft and easy drinking, red fruited, light and quaffable. More of a table wine.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Santenay 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Santenay

  30 year old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mos in small vats >10% barrel. Color is bright ruby. Nose on this is more muted not expressive. Tastes very well put together with a good balance of red fruit, fresh acidity and earthy finish. A nice wine to accompany dinner at home.

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• 2015 Louis Latour Nuits St. Georges 89 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges

  30 year old vines, hand-picked, open-vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in oak barrel - 20% new. Color is bright ruby. Nose of fresh cherries. On the palate this has zippy tart cherry fruit, racy acidity and loamy earth. A bit more lean than the Santenay - this would be best served with food.

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• 2015 Louis Latour Gevrey-Chambertin 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin

  30 yr old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in oak barrels- 20% new. Color on this is a slightly darker ruby red. The nose is quite pretty with florals coming through alongside the cherries. On the palate there is nice tension with red fruits, minerals and baking spice. Quite nice.

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• 2015 Louis Latour Volnay 1er Cru En Chevret 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  35 yr old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in oak barrel - 25% new. Color is bright ruby. Lots of good barnyard flavors on the nose - very earthy not stinky. On the palate this comes across elegant and pulled together - red fruit, loamy earth and a long mineral finish with a really silky mouthfeel. One of my favorites of the reds.

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• 2016 Louis Latour Beaune 1er Cru Vignes Franches 90 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru

  35 year old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in oak barrels - 25% new. Color is bright clear ruby. Nose has hints of barnyard alongside the red fruit. The palate on this is more fruit forward with less of an earthy signature. Think this is still very young and needs some cellar time to come together.

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• 2015 Louis Latour Corton-Grancey 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  40 yr old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in oak barrels - 35% new. Color is a darker denser ruby. Nose is restrained. On the palate this is quite concentrated and delicious with a nice harmony between the red cherry fruit, earth and acidity. Still very young and brawny - it should continue to improve and add complexity with cellar time. One of my favorites of the line up.

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• 2012 Louis Latour Corton-Grancey 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  40 yr old vines, hand-picked, open vat fermentation, aged 12 mo in oak barrels - 35% new. Tasted side by side with the '15 Corton-Grancey. The color on this was a bit more translucent ruby. The nose had a hint of barnyard and must and plums/strawberries. The additional age here shows in the more knit together presentation of the wine, but I think the '15 has a bit more power and vivacity. This is elegant and silky just a bit more quiet.

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