The 98+ Point 2015 Chateau Latour, "A seamless, totally captivating wine" (AG)
Today sees one of the biggest Bordeaux releases of the year, the 2015 vintage of Chateau Latour, alongside the 2017 Forts de Latour. Since Latour’s withdrawal from the traditional en primeur campaign, these ex-cellar releases have become eagerly anticipated meaning that the excellent 2015 vintage is set to see huge demand as it’s the first late release from a great vintage.
2015 was a strong vintage for Bordeaux. In Galloni’s in-bottle appraisal in 2018, Antonio Galloni said “Two thousand fifteen has turned out to be a fabulous vintage for Bordeaux” and “The finest 2015s are wonderfully sensual, exotic wines that should drink well relatively early and also reward aging.” Importantly of this release, he comment that “Latour really stands out”.
Recent notes from the critics back up this assertion and have shown this to be a spectacular young First Growth. For Lisa Perrotti-Brown, “grainy-
Looking at the price, Latour 2015 sits nicely below the Lafite and Chateau Margaux in the same vintage, making it an eye-catching opportunity given the comparable scores, as is demonstrated by the table below.
Forts de Latour is always one of the great second wines of Bordeaux and is superb in 2017. Lisa Perrotti-Brown awards it an eye-catching 94 points and calls it “elegantly styled, medium body with fantastically ripe, ever so fine-grained tannins and beautiful tension”. For those seeking a window into the Latour style at a more accessible price, it’s compelling.
98+ points Antonio Galloni
A seamless, totally captivating wine, the 2015 Latour has no beginning and no end, it simply exists in its own little world of pure and total harmony. Nothing is out of place. Instead, the 2015 captivates both the intellectual and hedonistic senses with its remarkable aromatic depth and textural brilliance. Exotic in its ripeness, with tremendous persistence and dazzling balances, the 2015 really does have it all.The 2015 is 97.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.6% Merlot and 0.3% Petit Verdot. Don’t miss it. (2017) www.vinous.com
98 points Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The 2015 Château Latour is a blend of 97.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.6% Merlot, and 0.3% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet colored, it requires a considerable amount of shaking to wake up the nose of plum preserves, warm cassis, and black cherry compote, giving way to exotic nuances of licorice, sandalwood, rose oil, and cardamom. The medium-bodied palate slowly expands in the mouth to reveal opulent notes of exotic spices, black fruit preserves, and floral accents, leading to a compelling minerally undercurrent. Wonderfully taut, firm, grainy-textured tannins and tantalizing acidity lend gravitas to all this flamboyant fruit, delivering a very long and fragrant finish. (2023) www.thewineindependent.
98 points Jane Anson
Aromatically this floats out of the glass, intense and concentrated but full of light and life. Waves of flavour come at you, from crushed raspberries, pomegrante and blackcurrant to fresher redcurrant and lemongrass set against richer truffles, crayon and smoked earth. Mouthwatering, this really is a vintage where you can see the impact of the biodynamic vineyard work, with a greater sense of sculpting and violet florality than you would have found in this Pauillac powerhouse a decade earlier, without sacrificing structure and depth. As it opens, the sweetness of a ripe vintage comes through in edges of smoked caramel. A beautiful wine, thoroughly enjoyable, extremely well-handled and set to power through the decades. Harvest September 15 to October 10, 30% of production in the main wine. Hélène Genin technical director. (2023) www.
96 points Neal Martin
The 2015 Latour was bottled in July 2017 and contains 13.04% alcohol. It is blessed with a refined and focused bouquet: perfumed blackberry and raspberry scents, iodine, pine and light pencil shaving aromas. It has dispensed with the subtle fig-like/exotic notes noticeable three years ago, arguably a little more conservative today. The palate is medium-bodied, with fine-grain tannins; harmonious and poised, clean and precise, understated with an irresistible silky texture. The 2015 does not possess a peacock’s tail like a top-tier Latour. No, it prefers to remain cool, calm and collected for now. This sublime First Growth will cruise for many years. (2023) www.vinous.com Drink 2025-2055
