Ripe and very powerful aromas of black licorice, currants and violets. Full-bodied, dense and flavorful with lots of very new, flashy wood. Sexy and gorgeous. Round and polished tannins. Superb wine for the vintage. Try after 2028
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 color, 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.
A pure, sleek, seamless beauty, featuring a crystal-clear core of cassis, cherry and damson plum fruit racing along, glistening with lilac, iron and wet pebble notes. Shows terrific spine and clarity, with well-buried grip running throughout. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2025 through 2040.
A blend of 92.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7.8% Merlot, and 0.1% Petit Verdot, the 2017 Latour has a deep garnet-purple color. It sashays out with showy notes of warm cassis, mulberries, and Morello cherries, followed by emerging tertiary hints of unsmoked cigars, rose oil, cardamom, and star anise, with a waft of iron ore. The medium-bodied palate is elegantly styled and mineral-laced, featuring loads of exotic sparks and velvety tannins, finishing on a lingering anise note. Beautiful! While it's in a nice place right now, another 2 to 4 years in bottle should allow for even more of this gorgeous, emerging perfume. It will easily cellar for another 30 years beyond that.
A seriously pretty Latour, not a phrase often associated with this most concentrated of wines, with real lyricism. Beautifully layered, with muscles that have a cushion of air underneath them. As during En Primeur, its sculpted character highlights the impact of biodynamic farming, but bottle ageing has seen it take on the customary concentrated layers of this Pauillac First Growth. The signature pencil lead, crayon, mint leaf and crushed rocks are here in abundance, along with cassis and bilberry fruit, kissed with rosebud and peony florality, and textured slate tannins that slow things down through the mid palate. A delicious wine, vibrant, balanced, decades ahead of it, even if the soft sculpting of the vintage means it will be ready to drink earlier than 2016 or 2018 on either side. First year in full organics, although not certified until 2019, and the first without Cabernet Franc in the blend. 100% new oak. No frost on the Grand Vin plots, in a year where many parts of Bordeaux were impacted, proof again of what a favoured site this is.
On the minerality side of the style range, picture crushed rocks, leafy herbs, mint, tobacco, and spice surrounding black currants in the perfume. On the palate, the wine is bright, racy, and energetic. The focus on the bright palate is its core of crispness, cassis, and lingering peppery red currants. The wine is chewy, and fresh, with a minty edge. The wine blends 92.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7.8% Merlot, and 0.1% Petit Verdot, reaching 13% ABV. Drink from 2027-2060.
Based on 92.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7.8 % Merlot, and a splash of Petite Verdot, the 2017 Chateau Latour spent 16 months in new barrels and hit 13.3% natural alcohol with a pH 3.7 and an IPT of 66. It's a classic, ageworthy Latour offering a deep purple/ruby hue, textbook Latour graphite, lead pencil, minerality, and cassis-driven aromatics, building tannins, and a beautiful sense of power married to elegance. Flawlessly balanced, medium to full-bodied, and with the class that this estate is known for, hide bottles for 7-8 years and enjoy over the following 3-4 decades.
This wine's tannins are hugely rich and concentrated. They give what is also a fruity wine power, density and shape. Don't forget the fruits though, because they will be a powerhouse of richness as they mature. Drink this wine from 2024.
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.
Technical Details
Blend92.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7.8% Merlot and 0.1% Petit Verdot
WinemakerFrédéric Engerer
CountryFrance
RegionBordeaux
Sub-RegionLeft Bank
AppellationPauillac
Oak100% new French oak
Alcohol13%
Shop All Wines Château Latour Grand Cru Classé Pauillac 2017
What can be said about Château Latour that hasn’t been uttered a thousand times before? This is a legendary estate, and has been for centuries...with good reason! The wines here are as consistently amazing, timeless, and as perfect as any wine, anywhere, for all time. When winemaker Helene Genin and crew pushed for conversion to biodynamics, and a movement away from the yearly release model – there were naysayers, though it seems they’re pretty quiet at the moment! These wines are something special, to say the least.
The clayey and gravelly hillsides of Château Latour’s vineyards sit 12 to 16 meters above the Gironde estuary – this perfect combination of soil and location lending the land advantages that few other vineyards can boast. The estate owns 96.5 hectares of vineyard land, a breathtaking mosaic of vines that reach up to 100 years of age. This 99-point 2017 is a blend of 92.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7.8% Merlot, and a mere 0.1% splash of Petite Verdot to give it that signature, savory Château Latour punch.
This is an absolute giant of a wine – approachable and ripe now, though containing the power and gusto to last many, many decades into the future. The fullest of body with dense, pure fruits of black currants, cherries, and damson plums build out the rich core, surrounded by polished accents of black licorice, violets, cassis, blackberry pie, dark chocolate, wet stones, charred cedar wood, and cumin. Exotic yet perfumed and elegant, this is a silky, brooding wine with full fruits and fine-grained tannins that showcase just why and how this estate has grown such a lasting, widely respected reputation. Collectors, this is your time to bring home a real treasure, and save $275 while you’re at it. Shipping’s included on orders of 2+ bottles, so why not savor one now and lay the other down for later?
About the Producer
Located in the lush commune of Pauillac in Bordeaux, Château Latour is a beacon of winemaking fame. Boasting a prestigious First Growth rating from the 1855 Bordeaux Classification, this vineyard is a hot ticket item for wine lovers everywhere. With its focus on Cabernet Sauvignon, this winery produces robust and long-lasting wines that are a force to be reckoned with.
Nestled in the southeast corner of Pauillac and bordering Saint-Julien, Château Latour is a true gem of the Médoc region. Its vineyard boasts an impressive 80% of Cabernet Sauvignon, with the remaining grapes being Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. The grand vin is only made from the choicest plots surrounding the chateau, as depicted on the 1759 plan of the domaine.
For those looking for a taste of Latour's signature style, but at a more accessible price point, the winery also offers Les Forts de Latour and Pauillac de Latour – both made from the vineyard's younger vines.
