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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.2 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 65 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by LTTC on 9/8/2023: (SYP) blind tasting. guessed 1994 Haut Brion
PNP - A classic left bank nose, with tobacco, savoury spices and blackberries. It is fresh and has good fruit on the palate. The finish is rather dry. 91-92 (1103 views) | | | Tasted by Cikgoo on 4/24/2023 & rated 94 points: WOTN (1594 views) | | | Tasted by hprphf on 7/8/2022 & rated 92 points: Off-vintage Latour are so consistent. Elegant hue with strong pencilbox characters. Light but pleasurable. 92 (2863 views) | | | Tasted by vinkeger on 11/28/2020 & rated 92 points: Fra Jeroboam. Kjølig og klassisk. Mørk frukt. Blyantspiss og lær. Heldigvis lite tobakk. Fullmodent og pent. Et snev støvete, men ikke verst. Finslipt i munn med syrlig og asketisk frukt. Ikke den største årgangen, men godt er det! (5052 views) | | | Tasted by Jeff Leve on 8/26/2020 & rated 90 points: Medium-bodied, with bright, sharp red berries, cranberry, leaf, cedar, wet forest, herb and cigar box aromatics. Not quite lightweight, on the palate, there is a touch of austerity and rusticity to the tannins along with piquant red fruits and herbs in the finish. This is not a wine destined for further aging, if you have a bottle, drink up. (6528 views) | | | Tasted by winefloat on 8/3/2020 & rated 92 points: It was interesting and not too often I'm able to enjoy a 40 year old bottle. No flaws, great fill, well balanced. Resolved tannins, minerality and fruit notes took a back seat. I wouldn't hold onto this wine much longer. (4852 views) | | | Tasted by rossi.wine on 5/23/2020 & rated 93 points: A lovely bottle with a wonderful nose showing tobacco, old leather, spices, cedar wood, graphite and still hints of red fruit. On the palate a little tired maybe, very soft and smooth, but with well integrated acidity and good structure still. Nice length, too. Drink up. 92-94 (5331 views) | | | Tasted by ljl on 6/8/2019 & rated 90 points: Drank for 50th anniversary at Topping Rose. Dark red with no hint of age. Beautiful aroma when opened which dissipated rather quickly. Drank over a 2.5 hour period. At its peak after about 1.5 hours. When first opened slight bite. Well balanced with less fruit than I had hoped for. (5536 views) | | | Tasted by pavel_p on 2/17/2019 flawed bottle: High shoulder fill. Opened and tasted over several hours as I was hoping this to turn around. Nice garnet color not showing its age. Dark fruit however while the bottle was not corked the wine was tainted and was showing some fairly prominent notes of wet forest floor or cellar. Did not change much even on day 2 in the open bottle (4660 views) | | | Tasted by Paul S on 1/9/2019 & rated 93 points: NDG: 9/1/19 dinner with Magnums of 9 to celebrate the start of 2019 (Imperial Treasure Teochew, Ion): Lovely. Served in a magnum - this was not the greatest Latour by any stretch of the imagination, but this was a really, really solid 1979 Bordeaux. The nose was classic Pauillac, with lovely masculine drifts of truffley earth, meat, cassis, a ring of tobacco smoke and bits of pencil lead. Really nice. The palate was round and velvety, with shades of juicy cassis patted down in a lovely bed of earth and meat and pencil lead, tons of mushroomy flavours - ceps I thought - all this couched in beautifully integrated acidity and soft tannins. Wonderful balance, lovely easy depth, and a wonderfully detailed finish kissed with notes of spice and earth, all made for a lovely drink. Really emjoyable stuff, probably at peak. (4661 views) | | | Tasted by sdr on 7/15/2018 & rated 77 points: Reticent. Hard bitter fruit. Doubt it will ever soften up. Maybe just a bad bottle. The biggest disappointment of the tasting. (4967 views) | | | Tasted by europat55 on 3/9/2018 & rated 92 points: Nose: A- Palate: B++ (5350 views) | | | Tasted by dcwino on 11/9/2017 & rated 92 points: 2017 Villa d’Este Wine Symposium - Kelly and Kevin's excellent adventure; 11/9/2017-11/14/2017 (Villa D’este, Lake Como and Milan): Fully mature claret nose, still noticeable cassis with a hint of plum, also cherry, cedar, lead pencil, leather, dirty damp cellar and scorched earth. Medium concentration, fully integrated palate, subtle cassis and cedar driven palate impression, good acidity, still a bit of noticeable slightly coarse tannins and a medium finish. This is a good but not great Latour. (6713 views) | | | Tasted by Sean Tay on 5/18/2017: The wine looks garnet colored. It smells like blackberry, blueberry, mushroom, forest floor, toast, cedar and black pepper. (323 views) | | | Tasted by ljl on 3/2/2017 & rated 90 points: Was concerned when the cork had shrunk and was all dried out. When finally opened there was a blast of a strong fruity aroma which died quickly. The wine needed about one and a half hours before it opened up with cherry and cedar flavors. (6515 views) | | | Tasted by Henning13 on 12/26/2016 & rated 87 points: I suspected the wine might be past its peak. And it was. Cork was in good condition, little sediment in bottle. Decanted for 3 hrs and wine opened up a little, improved further on the next day but still very restraint. Very soft tannins, good acidity, medium length, subtle fruit and notes of forest floor. (6296 views) | | | Tasted by GuillaumeC on 10/16/2016 & rated 92 points: bouchon impeccable, imbibé au quart et sorti d'un morceau avec le bilame.
à l'ouverture le nez était vraiment puissant, beaucoup de fruits rouges mais ça s'est estompé un peu avec de l'air.
La robe était d'un beau rubis encore foncé.
En bouche c'était vraiment excellent. Encore du beau fruit rouge, tanins évidemment assouplis mais toujours présents. Très surpris par la bouche compte tenu de l'âge et du millésime moyen.
J'ai pris la chance de le mettre en carafe (fond pas trop large) et j'ai bien fait. il ne s'est pas "fatigué" durant la soirée mais à repris un peu plus de vigueur.
Je suis agréablement surpris de la qualité de ce vin de 37 ans dans un millésime ordinaire. Preuve, encore une fois, que les grands vignerons savent faire de grands vins peu importe le millésime. (5993 views) | | | Tasted by Burgnick on 7/14/2016: This bottle was purchased and consumed in France. Unfortunately the condition was not as good as the previous bottles I had. Overwhelming herbal note that dominated the elegance and sweetness of the wine. (6100 views) | | | Tasted by tinybubbles on 11/20/2015 & rated 91 points: Sufficient dark fruit to still be enjoyable. Palate weak overall relative to what Latour can offer. (6640 views) | | | Tasted by lvandembergue on 9/15/2015 & rated 98 points: First great wine in my life, tasted twice for my 18th and 20th. I just remember "wow, that's how wine is". I wich i could afford it once again (5460 views) | | | Tasted by TWSA on 8/24/2015 & rated 92 points: Duration: 2 hours
Food: Teppanyaki
Condition: Perfect, decanted
Aroma: blueberry, spices, pepper, mint
Notes: an interesting effort from an average vintage. Tannins quite smooth and soft. Developed quite nicely throughout the night. This is actually pretty mild for a big wine like latour, maybe the vintage had an effect on the wine. I enjoyed the wine tonight. Drink now-2025. (5439 views) | | | Tasted by Lax on 8/14/2015 & rated 95 points: Only good bottles at this age, obviously very well stored. On the downward slope of peak but drinking very well on this night. By far the top of the 79 BDX heap. (5133 views) | | | Tasted by turtlexlax on 8/7/2015: Decanted it. It opened up well after three hours. Still excellent. Supple with plenty of fruit left. (4494 views) | | | Tasted by Goldstone on 6/4/2015 & rated 88 points: Old Bordeaux Dinner (Hong Kong Country Club, Shouson Hill, Hong Kong): Lovely jeweled translucent ruby-claret purple-ish colour. Nose is deep bass organ notes, resonant but surprisingly restrained - you have to chase after it. Palate is absolutely gorgeous on entry, very harmonious, definitely Pauillac with cedar, pencil shavings, graphite and dry fresh-sawn plank wood together with black cherry fruit but with the cherry stones still in them. Unfortunately too tannic to be really enjoyable. Not much length or resonance. (4606 views) | | | Tasted by galenico on 5/19/2015 & rated 90 points: LATOUR vs. MARGAUX (WINETIP): Concentrato e ampio: il frutto scuro è ancora sensibile, poi molto caffé, ma anche tanta freschezza mentolata. Dolcezza misurata del legno al sapore di tabacco biondo e spezie classiche del Cabernet. Naso molto in forma, elegante e voluminoso.
La bocca tradisce le aspettative dell' olfatto: è più stretta, acidula, amara e terrosa. Tannino ancora spinoso che richiede cibo. Annata minore, ma tutt' altro che deludente, ha una certa eleganza vegetale che lo rende particolare. (4164 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| Château Latour Producer website – Read more about Chateau Latour
Vineyard map
Classification: Premier Grand Cru Classé (First Growth) from the 1855 Bordeaux Classification
Owner: François Pinault since 1993
Manager: Frédéric Engerer
Address: 33250 Pauillac
Telephone: +33 5 56 73 19 80
Visits: By appointment only Monday to Friday, except on French public holidays, from 8.30 AM to 12.30 PM and from 2.00 PM to 5.00 PM
Vineyard: 78 hectares with the grand vin made exclusively from the 47 hectare l'Enclos vineyard surrounding the Château
Soil: Ancient Günzian gravel
Varietals: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 20% Merlot and 1% Petite Verdot
Density: 10,000 vines/hectare
Average Vine Age: 50 years
Average Yield: 45-50 hectoliters/hectare
Harvest: By hand, 100% destemmed
Fermentation: 3 weeks in temperature controlled stainless steel vats with malolatics occuring in vats
Ageing: 100% new oak for 18 months
Racking: Every 3 months and fined with egg whites the winter before bottling
Average Production: 180,000 bottles (55% of total)
Second Wine: Les Forts de Latour
Third Wine: Pauillac
Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.France Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)
Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings
2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.comBordeaux Bordeaux Wine Guide
Vins Bordeaux (Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux)
History of Bordeaux
History of 1855 Bordeaux Classification
"2009 is all about ripeness, with wines impressively packed with ripe fruit and high alcohol levels. They are showy, in-your-face, and full of pleasure. The 2010s have the fruit and alcohol levels of the 2009s, but with a compelling freshness on the finish that balances the fruit and provides a perfect sense of structure." - Ben Nelson
"2016 is a landmark vintage in certain spots of Bordeaux and it should be remembered as one of the most inspired campaigns of the last 40-50+ years." -Jon Rimmerman
"The quality of red Bordeaux in 2016 was universally lauded – although the response to the en primeur campaign was muted. Quantity was high too, with the equivalent of 770 million bottles of wine produced. An exceptionally dry summer with cool nights eventually, thanks to mid September rain, resulted in small, thick-skinned, ripe grapes, and the wines are marked by high tannin and acidity, with superb aromatic fragrance." - Jancis Robinson
"2017 was complicated, but there are some excellent wines. Expect plenty of freshness and drinkability from wines that will offer excellent value, and others that will rival 2016 in terms of ripeness and ageability. But they are likely to be the exception not the rule, making careful selection key." - Jane Anson
"In the past, a vintage such as 2022 may have been overripe, raisined and low in acidity but 2022 had a sneaky little reservoir in its back pocket - a near perfect marriage of cool/cold/rain the previous winter and the previous vintage that literally soaked the soils (a key to why 2022 is not 2003...or 1893)." - Jon RimmermanMédoc Vins du Médoc (Conseil des Vins du Médoc) - Read More about the Medoc
VdB
The eight precisely defined appellations of the whole of the Médoc (from Blanquefort Brook to the north of the Bordeaux built-up area, almost to the Pointe de Grave) may claim the Médoc appellation. But there is also a specific territory in the north of the peninsula which produces exclusively wines with this appellation. In the great majority, the Médocs come from the north of the peninsula. The great individuality of this region is that the number of vines has increased more recently here than elsewhere, apart from a few isolated spots where vines have grown for many years. Today, the size of the small estate has brought about the development of a powerful co-operative movement. Four co-operatives out of five belong to the group called Unimédoc which ensures aging, bottling and marketing a large proportion of their wines.Pauillac Read more detailed information about Pauillac Looking full onto the river from the earliest days, with an important port activity, traces of which go back to ancient times (shipment of bronze as long ago as 2000 B.C.), Pauillac's life has always been intimately linked to the history of wine. Although port activities were at the root of its prosperity, Pauillac had to wait until the eighteenth century when Bordeaux ceased to hold its privileged position to become a wine port. The town then became the natural outlet for the wine production of neighbouring cantons before reaching its zenith in a period when the vineyards were exceptionally prosperous.
The characteristic of the Pauillac terroir is its exceptional relief: the many undulating ridges make it unique morphologically speaking. Highly favourable conditions facilitate the dissection of the layer of gravel. This thin, Garonne gravel from whose very poverty springs great richness, has an extremely effective natural drainage.
With their velvet red colour with a hint of amber, the wines from the Pauillac appellation, full-bodied and rich in tannin, are vigorous. Powerful when young, their aromas of red fruits (black-currant, raspberry) or flowers (violets, roses, irises) melt with the passing of time into a bouquet which is long in the mouth.
Rich and complex, the wines of Pauillac deserve to be laid down for a little longer.
Production conditions (Decree dated November 14, 1936)
In order to have the right to the Pauillac appellation of controlled origin, red wines must:
- come from the commune of Pauillac and from precisely defined parcels in the communes of Cissac, Saint-Julien, Saint-Estèphe and Saint-Sauveur, "excluding the parcels situated on recent alluvium and sand on impermeable subsoils",
- satisfy precise production conditions : grape-varieties (Cabernet-Sauvignon, Cabernet-Franc, Carmenère, Merlot Noir, Petit Verdot, Cot or Malbec), minimum of sugar (178 grammes - 6.27 oz. - per litre of must) degree (an acquired 10°5) base yield (45 hectolitres per hectare). |
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