2016 Latour
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Tasting notes
The 2016 Latour has everything on the nose: blackberry, graphite, crushed stone, subtle estuarine scents—it’s all here, and exquisitely defined, too. This corresponds exactly to previous bottles tasted at the property. The palate is medium-bodied with life-affirming graphite-tinged black fruit delivered with a sense of symmetry, mineral-driven with a captivating, precise finish. Utterly sublime. Tasted at the 10-Year-On tasting at Bordeaux Index.
Critic scores
Average Score
Neal Martin, Vinous
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Muscular, intense, maintains the estate signature as do its fellow Pauillac First Growths Mouton and Lafite. Less generous perhaps at Latour, you feel the walls and floor, pulsating, intense and with intent. Still a baby, but as it opens there are cutaways of fragrant roses and fennel, alongside wild blackberry, hawthorn, blackcurrant, cola, juicy pomegranate, dried cranberry, cocoa bean, cold ash and a ton of bitter black chocolate. Love it. Hélène Genin technical director, Eric Boissenot consultant, and at this point Latour was farming entirely organically and biodynamically, with organic certification coming in 2018. 100% new oak for ageing.
This has a fascinating nose of tar, tobacco, graphite, dried flowers and blackberries. Remarkably youthful at 10 years of age. The palate is structured and medium- to full-bodied, yet the structure is tempered by elegance. The tannins are integrated, firm, cohesive and well aligned with the delineated dark fruit profile. Youthful and accessible now, but will evolve exceptionally well. Drink or hold. 10 Years On retrospective.
Retasting the 2016 Château Latour next to both the 2010 and 2022 had me feeling like a kid in a candy store. Needing lots of air to show at its best, its dense purple hue is followed by quintessential Latour notes of smoky blackcurrants, scorched earth, graphite, and lead pencil shavings. This carries to a medium to full-bodied Pauillac that has lively acids, a pure, seamless, layered mouthfeel, building yet perfectly ripe tannins, and that rare Latour mix of power, austerity, and elegance that makes this château so compelling. Pulled from just 36% of the total production, the 2016 is 92.9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7.1% Merlot hitting 13.5 alcohol with an IPT of 83. It's primarily academic at this stage, but it's starting to round the corner and clearly, with its level of fruit and overall balance, offers pleasure. I think it needs another 5-7 years to hit the early stages of its prime drinking window and will have 75-100 years of overall longevity.
About the producer
One of Bordeaux’s five First Growths, as classified in 1855, Ch. Latour is among the most famous addresses in Pauillac and the world. The estate is renowned for its long-ageing, powerful and structured wines.