April 21, 2024 - My first encounter with this legend. Tasted double blind. This bottle was complex, superbly balanced and offered a lot of drinking pleasure, despite still showing young. However, this bottle in this setting didn’t have the je-ne-sais-qua-factor you would expect from a legend and that ultra-classic Latour profile, which in my head usually defines what Bordeaux is or should be. Still, this was a very good wine and has decades to go.
TN: Expressive, intense nose with lots of minerality, red and dark fruit, some minty/eucalyptus notes, hints of tobacco. Elegant, aromatically balanced, inviting. Same flavor profile with more layers of minerality on the palate, as well as some spices. Hardly any tertiary aromas. Quite complex and well-defined. Good attack and great mid-palate weight. Fine, elegant structure with a wall of fine tannins, perfectly integrated medium+ acidity, a fine/melty texture and an overall good balance.
Decanted: decanted for 2h, consumed out of the bottle 2h later. The person bringing the wine said that the wine was better without the decant.
April 20, 2024 - Initial nose was a bit off putting. I allowed the wine to open up in a decanter for about an hour. The wine just needed to breath. Excellent bottle. Drinking well now. This particular bottle did not have the complexity in the tertiary notes compared to Lafitte of the same year. I realize this observation could be attributed to bottle variability and I also do not have other experiences with this particular vintage.
March 29, 2024 - blind
Very fresh, still primary notes, in perfect shape. 99-100
February 17, 2024 - A very fine ‘82 Bordeaux but does not reach the usual heights of this contender for wine of the vintage. Nevertheless it is softly fragrant. Very mature. Not as ripe or classic as it can be. Possibly suboptimal storage at some point although the bottle looked good with a neck joint level and good color.
February 16, 2024 - Magical wine and a dream to try arguably the greatest wine from a mythical vintage. Still full of life. Black fruit and some tertiary characteristics. It has everything and will go on for another 50 years. If you can get your hands on a perfectly stored bottle, don’t miss this.
January 21, 2024 - Very good but more angular than other recent bottles
January 19, 2024 - not blind
For me close to his peak. Still black currant but in the same way some secondary and tertiary aromas. No hurry. With Cheval Blanc my favourite 82. 99
December 24, 2023 - Another brilliant bottle. Even more youthful than the last couple I had
December 23, 2023 - I was concerned this bottle, a recent purchase from K&L Auction, was fake. The low-mid neck fill was (barely) believable. But the capsule was so bright and clean it looked like it was placed yesterday. The label too was very clean. The cork came out easily and firmly in one piece and was saturated to about one fourth yet was stamped correctly. But on tasting there was no doubt that this was simply a fabulously well preserved bottle with the tell-tale gravely fragrance and firm and juicy black fruit with a hint of fresh thyme that is Latour. Clearly at its majestic peak from perfectly stored bottles such as this.
December 20, 2023 - Drank with JF & GG at Californos. Best bottle of 3. Really opened up with an hour decant. In perfect condition and really drinking beautifully. Has several decades of potential. Probably slighted it a point… maybe a 99!