2017, Château Latour, PAUILLAC

Bordeaux Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, 0.1% Petit Verdot.

The 2017 Latour is just starting to open aromatically. Medium in body, with tannins that have begun to soften, the 2017 is super-expressive and inviting today. It's a charming, relatively accessible young Latour that is all about finesse and understatement. Bright saline notes and lifted floral top notes convey class. 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous (2024).

The 2017 Latour, which was bottled mid-June and mid-July, has a tightly wound bouquet with black fruit, pencil lead and a strong marine influence. This is utterly compelling. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, what you may call an "athletic" Latour. There is no "fat" here, just pure black mineral-infused fruit with quintessential Pauillac notes of graphite and a touch of cedar on the persistent finish. Superb. 97 Neal Martin, Vinous (2019).

The 2017 Latour is a blend of 92.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7.8% Merlot and 0.1% Petit Verdot with 13.3% alcohol and an IPT of 66. Deep garnet-purple in colour, it starts off a little broody before exploding from the glass with powerful scents of ripe blackcurrants, blackberry pie and preserved black cherries plus touches of cedar chest, fenugreek, cumin seed and charcoal with emerging wafts of violets, dark chocolate, star anise and fertile loam. Medium-bodied, this may be one of the most elegant, great Latours ever, revealing layer upon layer of fresh, crunchy black fruits with a vast array of exotic spice and floral nuances, framed by super ripe, super fine-grained tannins, finishing very long with mineral sparks coming through. This is so nuanced and perfumed that I imagine, in 50 years, this wine could be mistaken for a great red Burgundy. 98 Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Advocate (2020).

It's fairly unusual in 2017 to find the bright blue-violet reflections around the rim of the wine that you find in years like 2010 and 2016, but it is here in abundance. Still extremely young, knitted, closed up, holding tight to its cassis and bilberry fruits at this point. This was the first year when they were in full organics, although not certified until 2019. It's a big-framed Latour and you can see that it is going to need a good long while before softening its Pauillac tannins; at least a decade on this showing. Lovely rich deep flavours here with great dollops of black spice. It feels majestic and full of Latour signature of menthol, liquorice, slate and earth. One of the best 2017s tasted. 18 months ageing, building up to 100% new oak. 98 Jane Anson, Decanter (2019).

Smells gorgeous - highly scented with lots of floral notes and ripe blackcurrants - the aromatics burst out of the glass. Succulent and juicy, lively and bright straight away, this is gorgeous - it's direct and focussed, certainly lean but not austere with a wonderfully silky texture and well defined tannins that give energy and frame the wine from start to finish. This really packs a punch, the concentrated flavour while not heavy or plush lingers a long long time and is so enjoyable. Cool blue fruits, pencil led salinity, cola edges and bright acidity - clean, pure and precise. And so drinkable. It's not exuberant, chewy or dense, it's light footed, still with a mineral salty grip but carefully controlled and calm yet generous in all the right places. This will age no doubt, but there's lots of zestiness giving a sense of freshness and approachability that is so delightful. A wine that knocks it out of the park and one so representative of Bordeaux and the Pauillac terroir. 98 Georgina Hindle, Decanter (2024).

Drinking Window: 2025 - 2047