Château Latour 2003: opulent, full-bodied, the ‘sexiest Latour since the 61′: The greatest Bordeaux at exclusive Members’ price: vintage sold out

Latour is undoubtedly one of the greatest names in wine, a legend of extraordinary standing, for more than two centuries consistently featuring on the most distinguished of tables and in the grandest of cellars. When considering its style, one cannot help but compare it to Lafite, its perfectly complementary partner and longstanding rival.

Hugh Johnson puts it like this: ‘Lafite is a tenor; Latour a bass. Lafite is a lyric; Latour an epic. Lafite is a dance; Latour a parade.’ It is this extraordinary blend of power and class which give Latour its famous ability to age for decades. Strong and muscular in its youth, it is usually the last of the First Growths to open up. In great years it is almost immortal. In lesser years, it still takes a decade to blossom.

The Wine Advocate (100/110): Administrator Frederic Engerer says the 2003 is the sexiest Latour ever made. He also described it as the 1990 without any brettanomyces. I loved this wine from the barrel and was fortunate enough to be able to purchase a small quantity, enjoying every bottle I have had. A profound example of Chateau Latour, the full-bodied, opulent 2003 is already performing well at age eleven, which is somewhat atypical. The pH is a relatively high 3.8, which also indicates low acidity. The wine is very ripe, but not over-ripe, offers great freshness, and lots of creme de cassis and camphor as well as hints of blackberries and chocolate. Dense, thick and unctuously textured, this staggering Latour is undeniably the most sumptuous, opulent wine made here since the 1982 or 1961. Drink it over the next two decades.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. – 28/08/2014