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Latour 2005

Pauillac, First Growth

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Tasting Notes
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. Score: 98 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2021-2045 06 October 2021
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. Score: 100 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2022-2055 01 April 2021
The 2005 Latour is nowhere near being ready to drink. For example, both the 2001 and 2002 were much more expressive when they were re-released a few years ago. The 2005, on the other hand is quite muted, especially in its aromatics. There is plenty of depth, power and overall persistence, but readers have to be prepared to cellar the 2005 for at least another few years. Its longevity, on the other hand, should not be an issue. Score: 96 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2020-2055 01 May 2017
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. Score: 98 Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 28 February 2019
2The 2005 Latour has long been a formidable wine. I was granted the opportunity to re-taste the 2005 at the property after their estate released library reserves in February 2017. Now at twelve years of age, it has retained that riveting bouquet of black cherries and black plum, crème de cassis and graphite, although I find less of the latter compared to previous bottles (including the one tasted blind just three weeks earlier). The palate is very well balanced with blackberry, black plum, sea salt, a hint of balsamic, quite spicy in the mouth with a hint of cloves. There is immense weight and presence in the mouth, although I wonder whether the tannins are as fine as say the 2010 or even the nascent 2016 Latour tasted alongside? Either way, it remains a fabulous First Growth destined to last many, many years. Tasted March 2017. Score: 98 Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2065 31 May 2017
Served blind at the chateau. This is just a beautiful Latour that stood out when tasted blind, even amongst the 2000 and 2005. It just has a beautiful bouquet that has a level of purity that may not have been achieved before although initially it is quite subdued. The palate is full-bodied with a tannic entry, a sense of symmetry at play here, enthralling length and harmony. This is a legend in the making. Tasted December 2009. Score: 99 Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 01 January 2011
Deep ruby-red. Reticent, brooding aromas of cassis, black plum, graphite and flowers. Then utterly explosive in the mouth, with wonderful sappy complexity of flavor and a thickness of texture that builds and builds toward the back; almost no sign of the new oak here. Offers a near-magical combination of power and refinement, but this extremely primary wine is still an infant. Finishes with extraordinary persistence that leaves the palate vibrating. One of the greatest young Bordeaux I've tasted in recent years, and more complete and classic than the outrageously lush 2003. For his part, Engerer feels that this wine combines the best traits of the 2003 and 2000 Latours. I made the mistake of retasting the 2007 after trying this, and the tannins of the younger wine came off as dry by comparison. Score: 98 Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar 01 May 2008
Deep ruby. Extravagantly ripe, deep nose offers black cherry, cassis, plum, mocha, minerals and flowers. Hugely sweet but with a mineral energy giving it great lift and definition in the mouth. This complete and highly complex wine saturates the entire palate with material and builds slowly but inexorably on the back. With its tactile, solid impression of extract, this is literally hard to spit. In comparison to this huge but perfectly balanced wine, the young 2006 is distinctly more compact today. Score: 96 - 98 Stephen Tanzer, Inside Bordeaux 01 May 2007
Deep ruby-red. Cassis, blackberry, violet, minerals and licorice on the nose. Dense and sappy in the mouth, with a wonderfully tactile quality and great finesse but youthfully unforthcoming today. The greatness of the wine can be seen on the almost painfully intense, slow-building, resounding finish, which features major tannic clout, extraordinary texture and breadth of flavor and great verve. You can't scrape this juice off your palate; I had the impression that the flavors were stronger after I had swirled and spit the wine. Engerer believes that the 2005 Latour is a more complete wine than either the 2000 or the 2003 made here. The 2000, he told me, could have used a bit more length, volume and brilliance of fruit, while the 2003 lacks classic aromas. The 2005, he added, has it all. This may well be a wine that lasts a half-century. Score: 95 - 98 Stephen Tanzer, Inside Bordeaux 01 May 2006
Only 44% of the production made it into the dense ruby/purple-hued 2005 Latour, a powerful, backward, 12,000-case blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Petit Verdot and Merlot. As I wrote last year, this classic effort is built for the ages, and is largely destined to be drunk by our offspring rather than anyone over the age of 50 today. Complex aromas of crushed rocks, graphite, black cherries, creme de cassis, new saddle leather, and dried mushrooms are still tightly wound. The wine is full-bodied and powerful with exceptionally high tannin combined with zesty acidity, and laser-like focus. It will require 15 or more years of cellaring. I still prefer the 2003, but administrator Frederic Engerer says this "is more Latour". Score: 96 Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2060 30 April 2008
The 2005 Mouton Rothschild will have to take a back seat to the prodigious 2006, but administrator Philippe Dalhuin deserves considerable credit for pushing Mouton to higher quality levels over recent years. A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest mostly Merlot, the dark purple-hued 2005 exhibits a restrained but promising nose of cedar, tobacco leaf, creme de cassis, and toasty oak. Full-bodied, tannic, and extremely backward, with the vintage’s tell-tale acidity, it appears to be even more closed in the bottle than it was from barrel. It does possess a long finish and multilayered mouthfeel. This is an undeniably outstanding, yet restrained, shy wine for a Mouton Rothschild. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2040+ Score: 96 Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2060 01 April 2008
A blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot and Petit Verdot, the powerful 2005 Latour is even higher in alcohol and tannin than the extraordinary 2003 (which I believe is a more generously styled wine). The 2005 is a quintessential Latour built for the ages. Monumental levels of concentration and tannin are found in this dense ruby/purple-colored effort. Aromas and flavors of liquid stones, graphite, black cherries, and cassis emerge from this massive yet fresh, lively, incredibly well-delineated Latour. This offering will test the patience of its purchasers as it will require 10-15 years of cellaring, and will keep for a minimum of 4-5 decades. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2060. Ask just about anybody which first-growth is pushing quality to the highest level, and the majority will claim it is Latour. With owner Francois Pinault giving perfectionist administrator Frederic Engerer carte blanche, this estate has been producing spectacular wines since 2000. New cellars, winemaking facilities, and barrel rooms only add to their ability to produce classic wines. Production is much smaller than at other Medoc first-growths with only 44% of the 2005 production making it into the grand vin. Score: 96 - 99 Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2017-2057 30 April 2007
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. Score: 99 James Suckling, Wine Spectator Maturity: 2018+ 31 March 2008
Incredible aromas of currants and exotic fruit. Hints of chocolate and cigar box. Very complex already. Full-bodied, concentrated and velvety. Chewy and powerful. Pure fruit. This is superpowerful. It's like a tidal wave of fruit and perfect tannins on your palate. This is a Latour 2000 II. On it's way to 100 points. Score: 95 - 100 James Suckling, Wine Spectator 01 April 2006
Excellent depth of colour. Very intense and spicy. Intriguing - this is a wine that drags you in to the glass! Full, ample, wonderful grand spread across the palate. Such magnificence - rides over the palate. All lovely fine tannins and subtlety. No obvious alcohol - dense but not tricksy. Yet there is the squareness and rigour of Latour. Just 13.35 per cent alcohol. Deliberate choice not to go for monstrous alcohol. Very intense and extremely fine. Intense and funnily enough it reminds me a bit of Ausone. The focus of it... The density of it.... Smoky character - a bit of woodsmoke. Very dry tannins but not drying on the finish. Cool, restrained, less aromatic than the Margaux. But very solid. This wine may still be motoring along after the Margaux. Very mineral. Structured like 2004 but with more flesh. Score: 19 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2018-2040 10 June 2004
Managed by the dynamic Frederic Engerer who is unrelenting in his pursuit of excellence meaning that Latour is always a contender for wine of the vintage, particularly so since 2000. The 2005 is everything that you could imagine in the context of this vintage. The nose is soaring and perfumed with dark black fruits and mineral complexity. Very layered with astounding minerality and a potent black fruit core with a texture like velvet. Powerful but supremely elegant with dangerously exciting acidity and long long length. Score: - Albany Vintners, - 01 January 1900

Tasting Notes

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.

Score: 98

Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2021-2045 06 October 2021

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.

Score: 100

Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2022-2055 01 April 2021

The 2005 Latour is nowhere near being ready to drink. For example, both the 2001 and 2002 were much more expressive when they were re-released a few years ago. The 2005, on the other hand is quite muted, especially in its aromatics. There is plenty of depth, power and overall persistence, but readers have to be prepared to cellar the 2005 for at least another few years. Its longevity, on the other hand, should not be an issue.

Score: 96

Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2020-2055 01 May 2017

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.

Score: 98

Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 28 February 2019

2The 2005 Latour has long been a formidable wine. I was granted the opportunity to re-taste the 2005 at the property after their estate released library reserves in February 2017. Now at twelve years of age, it has retained that riveting bouquet of black cherries and black plum, crème de cassis and graphite, although I find less of the latter compared to previous bottles (including the one tasted blind just three weeks earlier). The palate is very well balanced with blackberry, black plum, sea salt, a hint of balsamic, quite spicy in the mouth with a hint of cloves. There is immense weight and presence in the mouth, although I wonder whether the tannins are as fine as say the 2010 or even the nascent 2016 Latour tasted alongside? Either way, it remains a fabulous First Growth destined to last many, many years. Tasted March 2017.

Score: 98

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2065 31 May 2017

Served blind at the chateau. This is just a beautiful Latour that stood out when tasted blind, even amongst the 2000 and 2005. It just has a beautiful bouquet that has a level of purity that may not have been achieved before although initially it is quite subdued. The palate is full-bodied with a tannic entry, a sense of symmetry at play here, enthralling length and harmony. This is a legend in the making. Tasted December 2009.

Score: 99

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 01 January 2011

Deep ruby-red. Reticent, brooding aromas of cassis, black plum, graphite and flowers. Then utterly explosive in the mouth, with wonderful sappy complexity of flavor and a thickness of texture that builds and builds toward the back; almost no sign of the new oak here. Offers a near-magical combination of power and refinement, but this extremely primary wine is still an infant. Finishes with extraordinary persistence that leaves the palate vibrating. One of the greatest young Bordeaux I've tasted in recent years, and more complete and classic than the outrageously lush 2003. For his part, Engerer feels that this wine combines the best traits of the 2003 and 2000 Latours. I made the mistake of retasting the 2007 after trying this, and the tannins of the younger wine came off as dry by comparison.

Score: 98

Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar 01 May 2008

Deep ruby. Extravagantly ripe, deep nose offers black cherry, cassis, plum, mocha, minerals and flowers. Hugely sweet but with a mineral energy giving it great lift and definition in the mouth. This complete and highly complex wine saturates the entire palate with material and builds slowly but inexorably on the back. With its tactile, solid impression of extract, this is literally hard to spit. In comparison to this huge but perfectly balanced wine, the young 2006 is distinctly more compact today.

Score: 96 - 98

Stephen Tanzer, Inside Bordeaux 01 May 2007

Deep ruby-red. Cassis, blackberry, violet, minerals and licorice on the nose. Dense and sappy in the mouth, with a wonderfully tactile quality and great finesse but youthfully unforthcoming today. The greatness of the wine can be seen on the almost painfully intense, slow-building, resounding finish, which features major tannic clout, extraordinary texture and breadth of flavor and great verve. You can't scrape this juice off your palate; I had the impression that the flavors were stronger after I had swirled and spit the wine. Engerer believes that the 2005 Latour is a more complete wine than either the 2000 or the 2003 made here. The 2000, he told me, could have used a bit more length, volume and brilliance of fruit, while the 2003 lacks classic aromas. The 2005, he added, has it all. This may well be a wine that lasts a half-century.

Score: 95 - 98

Stephen Tanzer, Inside Bordeaux 01 May 2006

Only 44% of the production made it into the dense ruby/purple-hued 2005 Latour, a powerful, backward, 12,000-case blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Petit Verdot and Merlot. As I wrote last year, this classic effort is built for the ages, and is largely destined to be drunk by our offspring rather than anyone over the age of 50 today. Complex aromas of crushed rocks, graphite, black cherries, creme de cassis, new saddle leather, and dried mushrooms are still tightly wound. The wine is full-bodied and powerful with exceptionally high tannin combined with zesty acidity, and laser-like focus. It will require 15 or more years of cellaring. I still prefer the 2003, but administrator Frederic Engerer says this "is more Latour".

Score: 96

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2060 30 April 2008

The 2005 Mouton Rothschild will have to take a back seat to the prodigious 2006, but administrator Philippe Dalhuin deserves considerable credit for pushing Mouton to higher quality levels over recent years. A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest mostly Merlot, the dark purple-hued 2005 exhibits a restrained but promising nose of cedar, tobacco leaf, creme de cassis, and toasty oak. Full-bodied, tannic, and extremely backward, with the vintage’s tell-tale acidity, it appears to be even more closed in the bottle than it was from barrel. It does possess a long finish and multilayered mouthfeel. This is an undeniably outstanding, yet restrained, shy wine for a Mouton Rothschild. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2040+

Score: 96

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2060 01 April 2008

A blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot and Petit Verdot, the powerful 2005 Latour is even higher in alcohol and tannin than the extraordinary 2003 (which I believe is a more generously styled wine). The 2005 is a quintessential Latour built for the ages. Monumental levels of concentration and tannin are found in this dense ruby/purple-colored effort. Aromas and flavors of liquid stones, graphite, black cherries, and cassis emerge from this massive yet fresh, lively, incredibly well-delineated Latour. This offering will test the patience of its purchasers as it will require 10-15 years of cellaring, and will keep for a minimum of 4-5 decades. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2060. Ask just about anybody which first-growth is pushing quality to the highest level, and the majority will claim it is Latour. With owner Francois Pinault giving perfectionist administrator Frederic Engerer carte blanche, this estate has been producing spectacular wines since 2000. New cellars, winemaking facilities, and barrel rooms only add to their ability to produce classic wines. Production is much smaller than at other Medoc first-growths with only 44% of the 2005 production making it into the grand vin.

Score: 96 - 99

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2017-2057 30 April 2007

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.

Score: 99

James Suckling, Wine Spectator Maturity: 2018+ 31 March 2008

Incredible aromas of currants and exotic fruit. Hints of chocolate and cigar box. Very complex already. Full-bodied, concentrated and velvety. Chewy and powerful. Pure fruit. This is superpowerful. It's like a tidal wave of fruit and perfect tannins on your palate. This is a Latour 2000 II. On it's way to 100 points.

Score: 95 - 100

James Suckling, Wine Spectator 01 April 2006

Excellent depth of colour. Very intense and spicy. Intriguing - this is a wine that drags you in to the glass! Full, ample, wonderful grand spread across the palate. Such magnificence - rides over the palate. All lovely fine tannins and subtlety. No obvious alcohol - dense but not tricksy. Yet there is the squareness and rigour of Latour. Just 13.35 per cent alcohol. Deliberate choice not to go for monstrous alcohol. Very intense and extremely fine. Intense and funnily enough it reminds me a bit of Ausone. The focus of it... The density of it.... Smoky character - a bit of woodsmoke. Very dry tannins but not drying on the finish. Cool, restrained, less aromatic than the Margaux. But very solid. This wine may still be motoring along after the Margaux. Very mineral. Structured like 2004 but with more flesh.

Score: 19

Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2018-2040 10 June 2004

Managed by the dynamic Frederic Engerer who is unrelenting in his pursuit of excellence meaning that Latour is always a contender for wine of the vintage, particularly so since 2000. The 2005 is everything that you could imagine in the context of this vintage. The nose is soaring and perfumed with dark black fruits and mineral complexity. Very layered with astounding minerality and a potent black fruit core with a texture like velvet. Powerful but supremely elegant with dangerously exciting acidity and long long length.

Score: -

Albany Vintners, - 01 January 1900

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