Chateau Latour
Few Pauillac estates are located this close to the water's edge. The Enclos, Chateau Latour's walled home vineyard is located approximately 300 meters from the Gironde estuary and about 50 km northwest of Bordeaux, perched on a gravel hill just 12 to 16 meters above the river.
This river plays a very important role. It mitigates frost, promotes the ripening of the grapes, and was the primary force behind the accumulation of gravel and clay in the first place. Beneath the gravel layer lies a layer of clay, allowing the old vines to extend their roots up to 3 meters deep to withstand the dry summers.
Classified as a First Growth in 1855, Latour now produces three red wines from various sections of the vineyard, with Les Forts de Latour added in 1966 and Pauillac de Château Latour in 1989. The wines are differentiated based on their Merlot content and the use of new oak barrels; the grading is decided each year at the blending table rather than following a fixed recipe.s.
The history
The history of Latour began long before wine was produced there. In 1331, Gosselm de Castillon was granted permission to build a fortified tower in the parish of Saint-Mober, which guarded the approaches to the mouth of the Gironde. The tower became the scene of military action during the Hundred Years’ War and was demolished by French troops following the Battle of Castillon in 1453. The round tower standing on this site today dates from the 1620s and was built as a dovecote, probably using stones from the old fortress.
The wine came later. In the early 18th century, the estate passed by marriage to Alexandre de Ségur, and the Ségur family, who also owned Lafite, Mouton and Calon, established its reputation. By 1767, a cask of ‘Latour’ wine cost twenty times as much as ordinary Bordeaux wine.
Latour's position at the top of the Pauillac rankings was solidified in 1855 when it was officially designated as a First Growth under the Médoc classification system. However, a significant portion of what defines this winery today was formed after that, and this process occurred gradually.
In 1966, a second wine with its own label, Les Forts de Latour, was introduced, taking its name from an old vineyard within Enclos. This was not simply a second wine made from leftover grapes. Decades of effort followed, and today, Les Forts de Latour has reached a level on par with Médoc Grand Cru Classé.
Then, in 1989, the first vintage of Pauillac de Château Latour, a third red wine created primarily with restaurants in mind, was released. Since then, every year, this wine has been made from grapes harvested from young vines and from vineyards that do not meet the Les Forts grade.
The descendants of the Ségur family owned the estate until the early 1960s, when it was acquired by British investors. François Pinault returned the estate to French ownership in 1993.
The vineyards
The vineyards measure 96,5 hectares and some vines are a hundred-years-old.
Most of Château Latour's vineyards are located on gravelly hills that are 12 to 16 meters higher than Gironde. While this elevation is not particularly high, it is sufficient to allow water to drain away from the flat Médoc area and to receive the mild air blowing in from the estuary.
The Enclos is the historic heart of the estate and measures 47 hectares of vines. Surrounding it and on its outskirts are vineyards belonging to the designated Pauillac area, which supplies grapes to Les Forts de Latour:
- Piñada, Petit Batailley, and Sainte-Anne: Vineyards that have belonged to the estate for over a century, with an average vine age of approximately 40 years.
- A 7-hectare vineyard located on the gravel terraces of Artigues: acquired in 2005.
- A few small parcels totalling about 5 hectares, added in 2012.
These vineyards are all quite different from one another. Because their soil, age, and aspect all differ, Les Forts exhibits greater variation in character from vintage to vintage than a grand vin. , but as raw material.
The terroir
Enclos is divided into two soil types. In the center is gravel mixed with clay, and around the edges is sand mixed with gravel. Beneath these two soil layers lies a layer of clay; this structure, a combination of a well-draining gravel surface overlaid on moisture-retaining subsoil, is the key factor cited to explain why this corner of Château Latour and Pauillac exhibits different characteristics from the surrounding areas.
Vines adapt to these conditions by extending their roots deeply. Old vines in the Latour region extend their roots to a depth of up to 3 meters, securing a buffer against dry summer conditions.
The climate here is influenced by two factors. The Atlantic brings a broad, mild, humid maritime climate. The estuary, a vast body of water located right next to it, mitigates sudden cold snaps early in the growing season and helped this vineyard withstand the severe frost of 1991.
The typical climate in the Médoc region is humid and mild in winter, cold and rainy in spring, and hot in summer, with rain continuing until around mid-July. By August, the temperature difference between day and night widens, accelerating ripening while keeping the aromas fresh. Fall usually begins with clear, cool weather. That is generally the case. The weather in Médoc is unpredictable, and it is precisely this unpredictability that makes the taste of a given year's Latour vintage distinctly different from that of the following year.
The grape varieties
The grape varieties of the vineyards of Chateau Latour are:
- Cabernet Sauvignon, approximately 76%
- Merlot, approximately 22%
- Petit Verdot, approximately 2%
Since the blend is determined by harvest conditions and grape quality, the exact proportions vary from year to year.
The main difference per wine is the portion Merlot. The Grand Vin has usually under 15%, the Forts de Latour approximately 25%-35% and the Pauillac de Latour approximately 40%-50%.
The winemaking
Chateau Latour was one of the first Bordeaux estates to install stainless-steel vats back in the 1960s. In 2001, the winery was refurbished and now houses more than eighty stainless-steel tanks ranging in capacity from 12 to 164 hectolitres, small enough to allow grapes with similar characteristics to be fermented separately.
As soon as the harvest arrives at the winery, it undergoes destemming and pressing, and is then divided into batches according to grape variety, the age of the vines, the results of soil analyses of the vineyard, the history of each plot and the flavour characteristics of the grapes.
The young wine is aged for around three weeks in temperature-controlled tanks. After racking, malolactic fermentation takes place over the following month, finishing sometime between late November and January. The grape marc is pressed separately, and this press wine is placed in individual barrels for ageing.
From mid-January, Frédéric Engerer and the technical team, together with consultant Éric Boissennot, taste each batch. First, they determine the blend for the Grand Vin, then for Les Forts de Latour, and finally for Pauillac. Some of the press wine is added back into the main blend, depending on its quality and the requirements of the specific vintage.
Ageing takes place in French oak barrels sourced from the forests of central France, and for the ‘grand vin’, the barrels are replaced annually. The wine is aged in the first-year cellar until the start of the following summer: the glass stoppers sit loosely against the surface to allow a little air to pass through, and the barrels are topped up twice a week, a process known as ‘ouillage’. Before the summer heat sets in, the barrels are moved to the second-year cellar for the next ten to thirteen months, this time hermetically sealed and stored on their sides.
A year after being transferred to the barrels, the wine is clarified using egg whites , between one and six egg whites per barrel, and after about 45 days it is racked off the lees.
Bottling takes place when tasting indicates that the wine is ready: it has already passed the peak of its youth, whilst retaining its richness, but has not yet begun to dry out.
The wines
Château Latour produces three varieties of red wine.
The ‘Château Latour’ Grand Vin is made exclusively from grapes grown on the oldest vines of the l’Enclos plot, a 47-hectare gravelly hill surrounding the château.
Les Forces de Latour is made from grapes sourced from three different areas: the outskirts of the l’Enclos plot, remote parts of the estate within the Pauillac classified growths area, and batches of grapes from l’Enclos that could have been used to produce the ‘grand vin’ but were deemed, during blending tastings, to be more suitable for Les Forces de Latour. The outlying plots include ‘Pinyada’, ‘Petit-Bataille’ and ‘Sainte-Anne’, which have belonged to the estate for over a century, as well as seven hectares in Artigue, acquired in 2005, and a further five added in 2012.
The third wine, Pauillac de Château Latour is the most accessible of the three. It is made from grapes grown on the youngest vines and contains the highest proportion of Merlot, around 45 per cent, whilst being aged in only about 20 per cent new oak barrels. This full-bodied, fruity wine is enjoyable immediately upon release and continues to improve over the following few years.
Latour abandoned the en primeur system after the 2011 harvest and now releases each wine only when it considers it ready: eight to ten years after harvest for the grand vin, six to eight years for Les Forts and four to six years for Pauillac. In addition, the estate re-releases older vintages from its own cellars. Consequently, the Latour available on the market at any given time is rarely the youngest vintage produced.
The best vintages of Chateau Latour
Outstanding vintages are especially: 1893, 1899, 1990, 1928, 1945, 1955, 1959, 1961, 1982, 1990, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2022.
Frequently asked questions
Where exactly is Château Latour?
In Pauillac, in the Médoc, roughly 50 km north-west of Bordeaux. The estate's historic vineyard, the Enclos, stands about 300 metres from the Gironde estuary.
Is Les Forts de Latour just a second wine?
It functions as one, but the estate rates its quality at Médoc Grand Cru Classé level and makes it with the same methods as the grand vin. It was first bottled under its own label in 1966.
What is the difference between Les Forts de Latour and Pauillac de Château Latour?
Sources of grapes and proportions of new oak, mainly. The Pauillac comes from younger vines and less favoured plots, has more Merlot in the blend, and sees far less new wood.
Why does the estuary matter so much at Latour?
That body of water tempers extremes. It protects the vines against early cold spells, as in the frost year of 1991, and it helps the grapes ripen a little earlier than they otherwise would.
