Latour 2015

The 2015 Latour, which was bottled in July 2017, has an immediately impactful bouquet with intense black fruit laced with subtle notes of seaweed and sea spray, as if a little of the Gironde estuary imparts its character into the aromatics. It is extremely well defined and very focused, that slate-like note replaced by a subtle mintiness. The palate is silky smooth on the entry that almost betrays the depth and volume of this Latour. This is a voluminous, multifaceted Latour rather than a powerful one, layers of black fruit infused with graphite and cedar that leads to a very long finish. It will require a decade in bottle before it enters its drinking plateau although there is a sense of approachability that I suspect will deceive some into broaching this too early. Anticipated maturity: 2025 - 2065.

Aromas of iron, oyster shell, rust and stones with blueberries and blackberries. Full-bodied, yet ever so polished and refined. It rolls off the palate with fruit and salty flavors. Tight, focused and always refined. Pretty length. 97% cabernet sauvignon gives this brightness. Drink in 2022.

The 2015 Latour is a blend of 97.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.6% Merlot, and 0.3% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet in color, it needs a little swirling to uncover the latent scents of black and red currant preserves, followed by notes of juicy blackberries, baked plums, and incense, plus touches of graphite and violets. The medium-bodied palate is completely filled with energetic black fruit and exotic spice layers, framed by super-ripe, firm, grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with a muscular burst of pure black fruit and lingering mineral sparks.

Aromatically this floats out of the glass, intense and concentrated but full of light and life. Waves of flavour come at you, from crushed raspberries, pomegrante and blackcurrant to fresher redcurrant and lemongrass set against richer truffles, crayon and smoked earth. Mouthwatering, this really is a vintage where you can see the impact of the biodynamic vineyard work, with a greater sense of sculpting and violet florality than you would have found in this Pauillac powerhouse a decade earlier, without sacrificing structure and depth. As it opens, the sweetness of a ripe vintage comes through in edges of smoked caramel. A beautiful wine, thoroughly enjoyable, extremely well-handled and set to power through the decades. Harvest September 15 to October 10, 30% of production in the main wine. Hélène Genin technical director.

Tasted blind. Blueish crimson with a pale rim. Very sweet with strong tea-leaf aromas and a little chewiness on the end. Not too forced. Very rich and hedonistic. Long and luscious.
Drink 2024-2042

Many have called this the best vineyard in the world and the dynamic Director of Chateau Latour, Frédéric Engerer, is determined to make the greatest wine possible. He has the confidence of owner, François Pinault, to do all that it takes to achieve this aim. Production levels have been slashed in recent vintages with only the best parcels of vines now producing grapes for the Grand Vin. The brave policy here is to no longer sell the wines en primeur but to wait until they are mature before they are released. Only 30% of total production is the grand vin this year which means less than 10,000 cases. It is a whopping 97% Cabernet Sauvignon with only a splash of Merlot from the oldest vines in the Enclos. This is the first 100% bio-dynamic vintage at Latour. A refreshingly modest 13.1 degrees alcohol. Deep purple colour. Dense black fruits with a little tar and wood smoke on the nose. The palate is muscular, ripe and multi-layered. Intense, dense blackcurrant fruit fleshes out to reveal nutmeg, clove and star anise, all wrapped in lots of firm, chewy tannins. This is a blockbuster but has a lifted, almost floral finish to bring a smoothness to the finish that is complex and subtle tone to all that power.

Breadth on the nose the palate has depth of fruit a mix of black cherry and black plum concentration and richness. The tannins are firm but ripe the back palate has a brooding power yet there is freshness on the finish lighter with hints of cedar wood and exotic spice.

Containing one of the largest ever percentages of Cabernet Sauvignon, partly because the Merlot wasn’t up to snuff, this is a very pure, focused wine of considerable power and intensity. Pauillac at its very best, with stylish tannins and the concentration to age for two decades or more. Drink: 2028-40

This is without doubt one of the wines of the vintage for very unusual reasons and it is possibly going to be remembered as one of the wines of the decade, if you consider it is a rare, virtual mono-varietal. The attack and tension here is utterly stunning in the sense that it literally stuns the palate. The fruit is so concentrated and yet so ethereal it is extraordinary. I have never seen ‘pure’ (97%) Cabernet looks so forthright, magnificent, nor more Zen-like and slender. The finish is immense and the line between the entry and the exit is laser driven, except that there is no end to the finish. It simply doesn’t have one...it is still going if not on my palate in my brain. Hélène Genin, technical director at Latour, confirmed that it was made from record levels of Cabernet and this was because the Grand Vin plot is all biodynamically farmed and that this fruit lagged behind the rest and this resulted in the later picked fruit all making the Grand Vin with very little Merlot in the mix. This is a wine which is, frustratingly, not going to be released for many years under the new regime at Latour (the 2000 is actually released this year) and so you will have to wait a while to see what all of the fuss is about.