Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of mint and currants with some spices. Full and velvety texture with fresh and clean fruit and a yummy finish.
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Wine Spectator
Rich and ripe wine. Dark red color with an amber edge. Loads of meat, berry and tobacco character on the nose. Very rich. Full-bodied, with soft, velvety tannins and a long, ultraripe fruit finish. Still very fresh and young.
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Decanter
At 35 years old this still tastes like a young wine, even with evident sweet oak notes that make you almost do a double-take and check the date on the label. It has a lot of upfront impact and an enjoyable density to the blackberry and blackcurrant fruit, but perhaps a little less nuanced than its Pauillac neighbours at this point, and a shorter palate overall. The tannic grip is still evident, and this feels very much anchored in Pauillac, with touches of liquorice and mint. No third wine at the time, meaning the selection was a little less strict than it would become a few years later. The final few years of a long-ago era at Latour, when the estate was headed up by Jean-Paul Gardère and Henri Martin, with Lord Cowdray owner. (Re-tasted Jan 2021)
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
The leader on the Left Bank in number of first growth classified producers within its boundaries, Pauillac has more than any of the other appellations, at three of the five. Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Mouton Rothschild border St. Estephe on its northern end and Chateau Latour is at Pauillac’s southern end, bordering St. Julien.
While the first growths are certainly some of the better producers of the Left Bank, today they often compete with some of the “lower ranked” producers (second, third, fourth, fifth growth) in quality and value. The Left Bank of Bordeaux subscribes to an arguably outdated method of classification that goes back to 1855. The finest chateaux in that year were judged on the basis of reputation and trading price; changes in rank since then have been miniscule at best. Today producers such as Chateau Pontet-Canet, Chateau Grand Puy-Lacoste, Chateau Lynch-Bages, among others (all fifth growth) offer some of the most outstanding wines in all of Bordeaux.
Defining characteristics of fine wines from Pauillac (i.e. Cabernet-based Bordeaux Blends) include inky and juicy blackcurrant, cedar or cigar box and plush or chalky tannins.
Layers of gravel in the Pauillac region are key to its wines’ character and quality. The layers offer excellent drainage in the relatively flat topography of the region allowing water to run off into “jalles” or streams, which subsequently flow off into the Gironde.