Château Latour
Château Latour

Château Latour

The Château Latour is a french estate. It is ranked Premier Cru Classé in the Official Classification created in 1855. There are 2 other Châteaux in the Pauillac appellation which also benefit from the prestigious title of 1er Cru Classé: Lafite Rothschild and Mouton Rothschild. 

Created around 1680, Château Latour‘s vineyard is one of the oldest in the Médoc. At the heart of the estate, the main parcel, called ‘l‘Enclos‘, is made up of 47 hectares of old vines that are preciously maintained, because only they are able to give birth to the ‘Grand Vin‘. The 18 hectares of exterior plots, the vines less than 10 years old and the possibly downgraded cuvées produce the second wine of the estate, ‘Les Forts de Latour‘. The wine of Château Latour is an example of regularity regardless of the quality of the vintage. Firm, tannic and concentrated in its youth ...

>> Read more on the article ‘Latour, Premier Cru Classé in 1855‘

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The history of Château Latour

 

A vineyard in its own right since the end of the 17th century, under the impetus of Alexandre de Ségur, Château Latour began to flourish in the heart of the 18th century, driven by the English aristocracy‘s growing demand for quality red wine. Even then, Château Latour stood out from the crowd: in 1767, the price of a barrel of Latour was 20 times that of a barrel of standard Bordeaux wine. At the time of the 1855 classification, Château Latour held the rank of premier cru classé alongside Châteaux Margaux, Lafite and Haut-Brion. In the middle of the 20th century, the Ségur family‘s excessive number of heirs led to the sale of the château, which was held for three decades by English financial groups before returning to the French fold in 1993 via businessman François Pinault. Pinault injected a breath of fresh air, renovating the infrastructure and enabling the château to become a pioneer in several fields. To date, Château Latour is the only Grand Cru Classé to produce organically (since 2018), and the only one not to sell its wines en primeur (since the 2012 vintage). The current cellar master is Hélène Gérin.

Château Latour‘s wines have been featured in several films and TV series, including Ratatouille (2007), Angel (season 2) and The Simpsons (season 4).

 

What are the characteristics of Château Latour wines?

  

Château Latour‘s 93-hectare vineyard is planted with Cabernet-Sauvignon (~75%), Merlot (~23%) and Petit Verdot (~2%).

Château Latour‘s vineyards are located on gravelly hilltops overlooking the Gironde estuary. This unique geology, combined with the combination of gravel on the surface and clay at depth, gives the Château Latour terroir a remarkable singularity. The vines, particularly the old vines, have deep roots (up to 3 meters) that draw on the lower marl-clay layers to ensure adequate nutrition, even in periods of drought.

Château Latour benefits from typical Médoc climatic conditions, but is also privileged by its proximity to the Gironde estuary (300 meters away), which helps temper climatic excesses such as frost and cold.

Château Latour wines are renowned for their solid tannic structure and aromatic depth, giving them great complexity. They are also distinguished by a remarkable balance between the richness of ripe fruit, freshness, aromatic complexity and harmoniously integrated acidity. The gravel and clay soils give the wines a distinct minerality, with aromas of black fruit, cedar and tobacco.

 

The best vintages of Château Latour

  

Two exceptional vintages stand out: Latour 1961 and Latour 1982.

The following vintages are also of excellent quality: Latour 1959, 1970, 2003, 2009 and 2010.

 

Wine and food pairing

 

Château Latour wines go perfectly with beef, game and poultry in general. Other dishes include truffle omelettes, Pauillac suckling lamb and porcini ravioli. Maroilles cheese is a perfect match for this red wine.

 

Official château website

 

https://www.chateau-latour.com

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