Martin Weiner's Magnificent Ch. Latours (1934-2002) Plus the Best of ths Grand Cru Neighbors

This was my first tasting at Martin's house and it was an incredible experience. He was an incredible host and I learned a lot. The wines that he assembled for the event were incredible. The 1934 Latour had a bottle fill into the top of the shoulder. I think that all the other wines were bottom of the neck or better; including offerings from the 50's, 60's, and 70's. Dinner was served during the second flight. It was a great rack of lamb, mashed potatoes, peas and beans. Cooked very nicely and spiced well. The wines really went well with the dinner.

Overall it was an incredible chance for me to taste this fine selection of wines. I took detailed notes on the wines and scored them during each flight. I will have more pictures and details about the event at www.LivingLikeBacchus.com, but all the tasting notes are also shown below.

We got started with a few lower rated wines by Parker, but they still offered a nice start to the evening. The 1989 Latour was my favorite of the flight. The 1999 Pichon-Baron had an odd odor at the start that began to blow off with aggressive swirling. If the wine could have spent more time in the glass before moving on the the next flight, the score may have improved.

• 1999 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 86 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Burgundy core with noticable browning. Moderate rim of peach also with brown tones. Nose was disjointed with spice, loam, graphite, and leather. The taste was chalky and dry. High, harsh tannins that hindered the enjoyment of the finish. Initial spice and red fruit flavors were smooth and well balanced, but the finish was not what I enjoyed.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1998 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Darker in color than the 1999, nice red tones with a pink rim. Nose was sweet and floral with honey, lemon, vanilla, and cola. Taste had low amounts of acidity, but it was not flabby. Red fruits, smooth, and a medium finish.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1989 Château Latour Grand Vin 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Garnet core with a pink rim that took on a little peach at the very end. Looked youthful. Spicey nose with leather and tobacco. Bold flavors of pepper, graphite, blueberry and cherry. High acidity.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

The lamb dinner was served during this flight. The 2000 Las Cases was incredible. Perfect score? Perhaps. The 2001 Latour was from a magnum and it improved through dinner. It was better with food than alone. It also had a little staleness on the nose initially that blew off quickly. It was improving as it rested in the glass. I increased my score on the wine after dinner was over.

• 2001 Château Latour Grand Vin 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  From a magnum. Deep burgundy color with a hint of garnet in the core. Minimal rim. Nose was a little hot. Sweet bouquet of pine and floral notes - nice depth. A hint of salt on the palate with blueberry, cherry, and some forest underpinnings. Very fine tannins that added to the finish. Perhaps a little fat. Worked very well with the lamb that it was served with. 93+

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 2002 Château Latour Grand Vin 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Preferred this to the 2001 by a little bit. Ruddy red with a thick rim. Hints of orange creeping into the rim. Sweet bouquet with cherry, vanilla, and frankincense. Intense fruit as well as pine and floral notes. Good depth in the wine. Higher acidity and the tannins, while well integrated, definitely dominate the back end of this wine. Enjoyable with lamb.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 2000 Château Léoville Las Cases 97 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  I think this is better than I am rating it, but I just do not know if I have tasted enough to give out a higher score. This was purple and burgundy, youthful in appearance with a very small rim. The deeply layered nose was bold and complex at the same time. Every whiff revealed a different bouquet. Sweet sherry, dark macerated red fruits, minerals, cedar, and cigar box. The palate was light and delicate and full of flavor. Vanilla, red fruit, pine, fresh worked earth. It was an exceptional bottle of wine and worth more points than I have scored it. I had it at 19 out of 20 on the UC Davis 20 point scale. Taking a half point off on each; the bouquet and the overall quality.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue

Very nice selection with the 1975 showing very weill in the flight. The 1966 was my wine of the flight, but the 1986 was improving as it sat in the glass. It starte with some sour notes on the nose and this was blowing off. Given a little more time I think this wine would have been as good as the 1966.

• 1986 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Great color - bright red, slight pink rim with very little orange on the very edge. Nose was a little sour at first, but it blew off. Fresh floral and red berries. Palate was sweet, lithe, and perhaps a little on the lighter side of my preference.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1975 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Garnet, wide rim, noticeable browning. Mushroom, wet pine, and loam on the nose. A hint of sourness on the palate. Red and blue fruits starting to fade, good tannins and well balanced. Smooth with a long finish. Very good for a vintage with a poor reputation.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1966 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  This bottle was in incredible shape. Fill level was bottom of the neck. The color was a little lighter and plum in color. The rim went from pink toward the core through peach and then orange and ended with a small clear rim at the very edge. The wine was bright and clear. Nose had a little lemon and citrus along with pine, sweet oak, and a light floral notes. Great depth and each time I inhaled the aroma it seemed to change. There was an incredible amount of fruit in this wine. Cherry and raspberry layers along with sweet tobacco and leather notes. It was a little bit sweet. Minimal tannins left. I would have guessed that this was 20 years younger (at least).

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

The 1977 was poorer than most of the other bottles tasted during the night. The 1975 Branaire and the 2000 Chevalier were mystery wines. Another 1975 that showed quite well. My wine of the flight was actually the 1975 Branaire for drinking right now. Perhaps it should have been rated higher.

• 1977 Château Latour Grand Vin 86 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Cherry red with a wide pink rim and a small orange rim at the edge. Weak nose of graphite, metal shavings. Taste was very mineral and metallic. Low acidity, flabby.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1975 Château Branaire (Duluc-Ducru) 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  From a magnum. Brown tint to the wine giving a muddy garnet appearance, wide rim with a very old appearance. Nose was restrained in intensity, but very nice in complexity: earth tones, dry leaves, dried cherries. Taste was smooth but a little restrained with red berry fruits. The finish was medium to long in length. Tannins have been consumed, but the balance is nice and it showed very well.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 2000 Domaine de Chevalier 92 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

  Dark purple all the way to the rim. Nose is spicy with cherry and vanilla. The taste is impressive with high complexity and flavors that seem to change with every taste. Peat, mineral, vanilla, dark red and black fruits, high acidity and tannins. The tannins need to integrate better as this wine ages.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

This was an incredible flight! These three wines sitting side by side and being tasted against each other. The 1982 Las Cases was in a class by itsself, an impressive feat given the company it was in.

• 1995 Château Latour Grand Vin 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Purple/burgundy in color with the color going almost all the way to the edge of the glass. There is a very small lavender rim starting to emerge. Nose of red fruits, smooth, sweet vanilla, pine; each time I get different aromas. Taste is very balanced with cherry, raspberry, cedar, tobacco. High acidity and very fine tannins. It has a full, coating mouth-feel and is well balanced. 96-97 points. This has a lot of time ahead of it.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1985 Château Léoville Las Cases 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  Burgundy core with a moderate rim. Intense nose that is smoky, graphite, tobacco, mineral. The palate just pops. It is bright, with gunmetal, high tannins and acidity. Needs some balance. It has plenty of structure to continue aging in the bottle.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1982 Château Léoville Las Cases 98 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  Dark, intense ruby red color with a very small rim. Looks 15 years younger in the glass than it really is. The nose is complex with layer after layer being revealed with every snort. Pine forest, fresh tilled earth, plum, cherry, white pepper, vanilla. I wanted to just sit there with my nose in the glass and relax. The taste did not disappoint. The wine has impeccable balance. Red fruits, vanilla support, cedar, tobacco, lavender. I cannot really say why I do not give it full points. I took a point off on the nose and on the taste. On the UC Davis 20 point scale I gave it 19.0 taking just half a point off for acidity and a half point off for sweetness.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue

The 1964 was the only bottle I did not rate due to oxidation. Considering the list of wines, it is incredible that this was the only corked wine. It was not undrinkable, but I elected not to rate it. The 1959 was in perfect shape. Not a hint of sour odors on the nose when poured. It was just perfect. This was probably my WOTN, but the 1982 Las Cases was great also.

• 1959 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 98 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  This bottle was in incredible shape. Bottle fill was into the neck. Cork was removed in one piece and passed around. Wet all the way through, but in great shape. Garnet in color with some browning evident. Gradient rim going from pink, through peach, to an orange brown at the end. There was a clear meniscus at the edge. Nose had clear notes of blackberry, dark macerated cherries. Incredible amount of fruit given the age. The nose also was complex with discernible aroma of leather, graphite, dried flowers. The juxtaposition of the fruit with the dry earth notes gave an incredible depth to the wine. There was some sweet lemon and citrus notes on the palate that may indicate the wine was starting to slide downhill, but this was not a sour taste and there was some lime, mineral, gunmetal. This was incredible and I was shocked to find the wine in this great of a condition. I took a point and a half off for the taste and half a point for the nose (just because). I rated it 19 out of 20 on the UC Davis scale.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1964 Château Latour Grand Vin Flawed

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  This was the only bottle of the night that had noticeable oxidation. Amazing considered the age of the bottles that were opened. There were still notes of cherry and forest floor, but it would be unfair to rate.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1934 Château Latour Grand Vin 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Fill was at top of the shoulder. Very light in color, but clear and bright. It was a crimson color, but weak in intensity. Pinot like. Very wide rim with a noticeable clear rim at the edge of the glass. The nose was wonderful on this aged wine. Multiple layers in this incredible bouquet: coffee grounds, mushroom, teriyaki sauce, toasted flour (like making a rue), dates, stewed sweet fruits. Just incredible. The taste was less enjoyable than the nose. Citric acids, sweet balsamic, no real fruit and no complexity. Tannins are gone and the wine is a little flabby at this point. Still, an incredible experience to have a wine from the same year that Hitler became Fuhrer of Germany, Hank Aaron is born, and Alcatraz becomes a prison. It is like drinking a little bit of history.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

The final flight had another nice wine from 1975. The 1996 and 2000 will continue to improve.

• 1975 Château Latour Grand Vin 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Ruby red, medium rim that was predominately pink, but with some orange/brown on the outer edge. Earth tones and chalk on the nose, somewhat simple. Cherry, vanilla, cola tastes. It is a little flabby with less tannins than I initially thought that it had based upon a very good finish. The acidity was low.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 1996 Château Latour Grand Vin 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Burgundy with a lavender rim. Nose of plum, red fruits, blueberry, red sour apples - Good depth and interest in the aromas. There was nice balance on the palate with high acidity and fine tannins carrying the cherry and vanilla all the way into the lingering finish. Secondary flavors may be starting to emerge. Some seemed to detect them, but I did not really see them emerge. Tastes like a wine that is only a few years old. Plenty of time for this to improve.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 2000 Château Latour Grand Vin 97 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  This was the last wine in an incredible night of tasting and it did not disappoint. Deep ruby red, bright, color all the way to the glass. Nose of spice, cherry, mushroom - good depth and intensity. Red fruits and earth tones on the palate. I can see why it gets perfect scores. I feel my rating is a little low, but ...

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Martin was a great host for the evening and his quality control in choosing these wines is inspiring.