Wine Advisor
Pauillac de Latour 2019
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Description
This wine has been made every year since 1989, and was developed primarily for the restaurant market. The Pauillac is made primarily from young vines, growing on the less prestigious terroirs in the vineyard, and from wines that do not meet the selection criteria for Forts de Latour (specific to each vintage). About 20% new barrels are used in the vinification of the Pauillac, the precise proportion varying depending on the characteristics of the vintage. The blend for Château Latour’s Pauillac typically consists of nearly 45% Merlot. This generous, fruity wine is an excellent introduction to the family of wines produced by Château Latour. It can be enjoyed after four to five years of ageing, and will continue to improve for several more years.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2019 Pauillac de Latour has a welcome strictness and focus on the nose, a straight-down-the-line Pauillac with graphite and pencil shavings infusing the black fruit. The oak is neatly integrated. The palate is medium-bodied, fresh and taut, with pliant tannins and fine acidity. A graphite infused finish doesn't press down too hard on the accelerator. Not over-ambitious - that's its strength. Difficult to believe this is in fact the third wine! Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.
Reviewed by: William Kelley
The 2019 Le Pauillac de Château Latour is a strong effort, offering up inviting aromas of cassis and plums mingled with notions of cigar wrapper, vanilla pod and creamy oak. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with good concentration and powdery tannins, it will offer a broad drinking window.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
This has chocolate, cedar and walnuts as well as some currant aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied with some lovely fruit and juiciness. 55.8% cabernet sauvignon, 38.8% merlot and 5.4% petit verdot. Attractive now but another year or two will make it even better.
About the Producer
Château Latour is located in the heart of the Médoc wine region, about 50 km north-west of Bordeaux, where the legend of the vineyards of Bordeaux began. The château's prime terroir, l’Enclos, overlooks the Gironde estuary: it is the river and the ocean that, over the centuries, have given the vineyard its geological complexity and, on a daily basis, ensure a mild climate. Château Latour’s superb location, just 300 metres from the estuary, gives it its special character and tempers any extreme weather conditions, especially spells of severe cold or frost, as for example in 1991. There are two factors that have a benign influence: • The proximity of the Atlantic, bringing the generosity of an ocean climate; • The immediate proximity of a large mass of water in the form of the estuary, protecting against possible cold spells early in the growth cycle and also enabling earlier ripening of the grapes, which can be an important factor as the harvests approach.
