Chateau Latour   Latour

2010 Latour

By Chateau Latour

2010 Latour from Chateau Latour, Pauillac, Bordeaux

In the esteemed winemaking calendar, the 2010 vintage from Pauillac rendered an array of exceptional wines, with the 2010 Latour from Chateau Latour being a paragon of such high-calibre output. The season was marked by an idyllic balance of factors: a dry yet relatively cool summer and a fair September provided just the right conditions for the Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to reach their fullest expression.

 

En Primeur to Eminence: The Evolution of 2010 Latour

From its en primeur beginnings, where it was greeted with fervent interest, to its current matured glory, the 2010 Latour from Chateau Latour has charted a steady course toward becoming one of the pinnacles for fine wine investors. This is not only on account of its remarkable structure and longevity but also its intricately woven sensory tapestry.

 

A Tête-à-Tête with Terroir

The terroir of Chateau Latour has long been lauded for delivering grapes that translate into powerful yet elegant wines. The 2010 vintage manifests this harmonious combat between power and finesse impeccably. It proffers a robust nose of blackcurrant and cherry interlaced with earthy truffle and cigar box aroma, demonstrating a finesse that belies its formidable structure.

The palate is graced with full-bodied tannins that are both silky and firm, ensuring profound longevity - a requisite trait for any discerning wine investment. Hints of graphite and subtle oak provide a palatial backdrop to the ripe dark fruits that dance across the tongue.

In summary, as one navigates the complexities and richness of the 2010 vintage from Chateau Latour, it becomes patently clear that this wine is a standout investment-grade choice. Its synthesis of vintage-specific elegance with the revered Chateau's consistent quality makes the 2010 Latour an astute addition for connoisseurs aiming to diversify their portfolios with exceptional bottles from Bordeaux.

Market price (HKD)

HK$90,330.00

12x75cl

Highest score

100

POP score

472.5

Scores and tasting notes

100

The aromas of flowers such as roses, violets and lilacs jump from the glass then turn to dark berries such as blueberries and blackberries. It's full-bodied, with velvety tannins and dense and intense with a chocolate, berry and currant character. This is juicy and rich with wood still showing a bit, but it's all coming together wonderfully. Muscular yet toned. Another perfect wine like the 2010. Try in 2022.

James Suckling - jamessuckling.com, November 14th 2013

100

The 2010 Latour is deep garnet in color, and—WOW—it erupts from the glass with powerful crème de cassis, Black Forest cake and blackberry pie scents plus intense sparks of dried roses, cigar boxes, fragrant earth and smoked meats with aniseed and crushed rocks wafts. Full-bodied, concentrated and oh-so-decadent in the mouth, it has a firm, grainy texture and lovely freshness carrying the rich, opulent fruit to an epically long finish. It is incredibly tempting to drink now, but I suspect this hedonic experience isn't a scratch on the mind-blowing, otherworldly secrets this time capsule will have to reveal given another 7-10 years in bottle and continuing over the following fifty years++.

Lisa Perrotti-Brown - The Wine Advocate, 5 March 2020

100

Tasted at the chateau, my sample was decanted for almost three hours. After the fireworks on the nose of the Les Forts de Latour, the Grand Vin comes as a shock. You have to readjust your mindset – this is subtle, understated, brooding Latour. Leaving it to one side to open up, it gradually unfurls to reveal very precise black fruits and minerals. It is not as immediate as say, Margaux or Lafite, but draws you in to its charms. The aromatics are misleading. The palate is incredibly intense with mouth-gripping tannins even although the IPT is actually less than the Les Forts de Latour. It offers unbelievably intensity, an almost brutal Latour at the moment that will need 15-20 years in bottle before it becomes approachable. This will rank alongside legends such as the 1961 and 1982 – but it is a wine for the next generation, not mine. Tasted November 2012.

Neal Martin - Wine Journal March 2013

100

One of the perfect wines of the vintage, Frederic Engerer challenged me when I tasted the 2010 Latour at the estate, asking, “If you rate the 2009 one hundred, then how can this not be higher?” Well, the scoring system stops at 100, (and has for 34 years,) and will continue for as long as I continue to write about wine. Nevertheless, this blend of 90.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9.5% Merlot, and .5% Petit Verdot hit 14.4% natural alcohol and represents a tiny 36% of their entire production. The pH is about 3.6, which is normal compared to the 3.8 pH of the 2009, that wine being slightly lower in alcohol, hence the combination that makes it more flamboyant and accessible. The 2010 is a liquid skyscraper in the mouth, building layers upon layers of extravagant, if not over-the-top richness with its hints of subtle charcoal, truffle, blackberry, cassis, espresso and notes of toast and graphite. Full-bodied, with wonderfully sweet tannin, it is a mind-boggling, prodigious achievement that should hit its prime in about 15 years, and last for 50 to 100. There is no denying the outrage and recriminations over the decision by the Pinault family and their administrator, Frederic Engerer, to pull Latour off the futures market next year. However, you can still buy these 2010s, although the first two wines are not likely to be released until they have more maturity, which makes sense from my perspective. Perhaps Latour may have offended a few loyal customers who were buying wines as futures, but they are trying to curtail all the interim speculation that occurs with great vintages of their wines (although only God knows what a great vintage of future Latour will bring at seven or eight years after the harvest). As a set of wines, the 2010s may be the Pinaults' and Engerer's greatest achievements to date. Of course, I suspect the other first-growth families won't want to hear that, nor will most of the negociants in Bordeaux, but it's just the way things are. Frederic Engerer, by no means the most modest of administrators at the first growths, thinks it would be virtually impossible to produce a wine better than this, and he may well be correct. If they gave out Academy Awards for great performances in wine, the Pinaults and Engerer would certainly fetch a few in 2010. P.S. Just so you don't worry, Engerer offered up the 2009 next to the 2010 to see if I thought it was still a 100-point wine, and yes, ladies and gentlemen, it still is.

Robert Parker Jr - Wine Advocate #194 May 2011

Vintage performance