Latour 2005 Ex-Chateau (6.0L)

100 VM / 100 JS / 100 WI / 99 WS / 98+ WA / 98 RP / 98 JD / 98 JA / 19 JR

The 2005 Latour was mind-blowingly profound in two recent tastings for this report. Deep and sensual to the core, the 2005 is utterly captivating. All the elements are so seamlessly put together. Graphite, crème de cassis, licorice, dark spice and lavender infuse the 2005 with so much energy. More than anything else, though, the 2005 is a Latour of texture and resonance. Even after several hours, the 2005 is fresh and full of energy. Wines like this are just life affirming. That's about all I can really say. Tasted two times. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

A very complex nose of lavender, currants, spices, and hot stones. Full and dense on the palate, with a very tight structure. The tannins have a perfect polish to their density, and the finish is very intense, with wonderful fruit and truffle character. This turns almost decadent, with tremendous energy and a constantly changing profile. This is a very challenging wine to get to know, please leave this for at least ten years. Pull the cork in 2015. - James Suckling

The 2005 Latour is made from 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-brick in color, it gallops out of the glass with incredibly youthful, powerful creme de cassis, blackberry pie, and plum preserves scents, followed by wafts of violets, licorice, eucalyptus, and fertile loam. Medium to full-bodied, super-concentrated, and energetic in the mouth, it has a rock-solid structure of firm, beautifully ripe tannins and so many layers, finishing on a long, lingering anise note. While it is beautifully open and expressive at the moment, it remains incredibly primary and therefore could be a disappointment for those seeking a more evolved, tertiary experience. I would give it another 5-7 years in bottle, at least, knowing this will likely cellar to 2070 and beyond. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown

Dark ruby black in color. Brilliant, intense aromas of mineral, blackberry and currant, with hints of Indian spices and cigar box, lead to a full-bodied palate, with ultrafine tannins and a beautiful balance of blackberry, raspberry and mineral. There's subtlety, yet also great depth. Lasts for minutes on the palate. This is a Latour with fabulous tone and vigor. Best after 2018. 12,500 cases made. - Wine Spectator

2005 was a very dry, warm and sunny vintage, causing vine stress in some areas of Bordeaux. Harvested from September 26 to October 6, the tannin/IPT levels were very high this year. The 2005 Latour is blended of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the rest Merlot and Petit Verdot. It is the biggest surprise of this tasting—until now, the wine was relatively closed and broody, but today the wine is just starting to reveal its personality—and what a stunner! Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, it opens with provocative floral scents of roses and violets over a core of fresh blackcurrants, chocolate-covered cherries and black raspberries with hints of fertile loam, unsmoked cigars and black tea. Medium to full-bodied, firm, grainy and packed with muscular fruit, it has an epically long, savory finish sparked by floral notes. 12,000 cases were made. - Lisa Perotti-Brown, Wine Advocate

The 2005 Latour (87% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot and Petit Verdot) is a spectacular effort from Château Latour. It has an inky plum/purple color and a gorgeous nose of graphite, crème de cassis, and floral notes with some forest floor in the background. It is full-bodied, super-concentrated, and for my taste, probably one of the two or three most intense, rich, and complex wines of the entire Médoc. The wine has great texture, purity and a finish of close to 40 or 45 seconds. The tannins are surprisingly sweet, even in this large-scaled, masculine wine. Drink it over the next 50+ years. - Robert Parker, Wine Advocate

A massive, powerful wine that tastes like the essence of the great estate, the 2005 Château Latour is based on 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance Merlot and Petit Verdot brought up in new barrels. It reveals a saturated purple/plum color as well as a gorgeous bouquet of blackcurrants, graphite, gravelly earth, tobacco, lead pencil, and chocolate. Dense, full-bodied, and massively concentrated, it has the more austere, masculine style of the estate front and center, yet has gorgeously sweet tannin, a stacked mid-palate, and a great, great finish. This profound, regal 2005 can be drunk any time over the coming 40-50 years, and I suspect even longer. - Jeb Dunnuck

Expectations are high when you open a top flight estate in one of Bordeaux’s most revered vintages, and the 2005 Latour, while still being stubborn, is poised to deliver the goods. So many layers to get through, and it moves in distinct stages, from sweet-salty dark chocolate and soy sauce through to earthy cassis and blackberries, finishing up with a delicate burst of rosebuds and violet flowers, and a saline, slate and mint kick on the finish. The flavours remain hidden at first and need coaxing - there is definitely no rush to open, and it may still be going through something of a dumb phase, but I have been lucky enough to taste this wine a few times this year, and this week’s example was one of the best, really beginning to grow into its potential, and showing plenty of old school Latour power. There are fireworks but you have to wait for them, and ideally I would still give it another few years. 100% new oak. This wine has been released En Primeur, then again in March 2017, and this is the third and final release. Harvest between September 26 and October 6. Decanted three hours before tasting, and it needs another few hours to fully open. - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

Along with Margaux, another standout 2005. Still closed on the nose, this is a precise, concentrated Latour which has the structure to age effortlessly for a further two (or more) decades. Intense lead-pencil character on the nose with a plush, rich, intense palate of vibrant, dark, concentrated fruit. Extremely glossy tannins and beautifully integrated oak, finishing with a fine, lingering graphite note. A thoroughbred, drinking beautifully already but will age extremely well. - Jancis Robinson