2013 Château Latour, Pauillac, Bordeaux

Blackish crimson. Latour's second vintage outside the en-primeur system. The nose is quite intense for a 2013, though it may suffer for being tasted next to the more ethereal Lafite 2013. It is dense and arguably a little stodgy. It may come right eventually, but it's just The Incredible Hulk at the moment. 

Drink 2025 - 2040

95.3% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4.3% Merlot and 0.4% Petit Verdot; 31.5% of the total production went into the Grand Vin.

Deep ruby. Fresh aromas of blackcurrant are complicated by loam, flint, and violet, and a strong oak element somewhat camouflage them. Then, it is smooth and balanced on the palate, with good density and a hint of iron in the fresh dark berry and graphite flavours. Finishes long, with polished tannins. It's one of the lighter-styled Latours I've tasted to date but a very successful wine for the year, as it has none of the rigid tannins of many other Bordeaux wines in 2013.

The flagship 2013 Chateau Latour comes from a much more challenging vintage and is 95.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4.4% Merlot, and 0.4% Petit Verdot. It shows its more Cabernet-dominated blend with a more compact, tight, reserved style that opens up nicely with time in the glass. Revealing a healthy ruby/plum colour, it has classic Latour notes of blackcurrants, freshly sharpened pencils, smoked tobacco, crushed stone, and liquorice.

It doesn't have the depth, richness, or expansiveness to be considered a great Latour but is medium-bodied, has a focused, elegant texture, ripe, silky tannins, and a narrow yet lengthy finish. Given the difficulties in the year, this is certainly a success as the purity of fruit is spot on, the tannins are sweet and polished, and it has plenty of classic Latour character. It should drink nicely over the coming 10-15 years and gradually decline.

Drink 2021 - 2036

The 2013 Latour has quite an austere nose, backward and slightly surly. Light and tertiary black fruit mix with cigar humidor and autumn leaf scents. The palate is better with a gentle grip, fine acidity and decent balance. You do wish for more fruit on the finish, though there is a greater density on the finish compared with the Lafite-Rothschild. Fine.

Drink 2023 - 2033

It is ideal with a one-hour carafe.

One of the successes of the vintage, with well-hewn tannins and grip. There are plenty of markers of a cool vintage here in the raspberry, redcurrant, cassis bud and cherry pit flavours, set alongside waves of smoked tea and tomato leaf. One to look out. First-year for Hélène Génin as technical director. Only 31% of the production made it into the first wine, meaning 6,000 cases, with almost all of it coming from the 24ha in L'Enclos that were being farmed biodynamically at the time.

Drink 2023 - 2036

The 2013 Latour is absolutely gorgeous. Of course, the 2013 is lighter in body than the norm here, but striking aromatics and silky tannins more than make up for that. A wine of total breed and class, the 2013 is a real pleasure to taste today. Naturally, the lighter structure of the year is impossible to escape. Even so, at eight years of age, the 2013 is just starting to show the first signs of aromatic nuance, and yet it remains a young wine.

The spread of botrytis led to an early harvest, with the exception to some blocks on the western side of the enclos that were more resistant to conditions and were therefore picked later. This is a remarkable showing considering a little more than 2/3rds of the vineyards for the Grand Vin) were farmed biodynamically back then. I can't wait to see how the 2013 ages. My opened bottle stayed fresh for a number of days.

Drink 2021 - 2033

Composed of 95.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4.4% Merlot and 0.4% Petit Verdot, the 2013 Latour offers an open-knit, fragrant nose of liquorice, sandalwood, rose petals and cigar box over a core of Black Forest cake, stewed plums, mulberries and redcurrant jelly, plus a waft of a cast-iron pan. The elegantly styled, medium-bodied palate 13% alcohol) fills the mouth with intense red and black berry preserves layers, framed by evolved, soft-textured tannins and well-knit freshness, finishing long and spicy.

This vintage does not have the power and backbone of an outstanding vintage of Latour, but it is ageing gracefully and still possesses a lot of discernible fruit with plenty of tertiary pizazz, which is absolutely delicious to drink right now. This sweet-spot stage is likely to continue for another 5-7 years before the wine plateaus at a maturity peak and holds for a further 15+ years.

Drink 2021 - 2041

Very enticing sweet tobacco, cedar, tar and blackcurrant on the nose with hints of black mushrooms and violets. It’s full-bodied with layers of ripe tannins that are still slightly chewy but show poise and focus. It has a juicy finish with a berry, iodine and walnut aftertaste—just a touch of austerity at the end. Savoury. Clearly, it is one of the top wines of this very difficult vintage, along with Margaux and Lafleur.

Drinkable now, but better in 2024

My Left Bank wine of the vintage. Superb cassis fruit from 89.9% Cabernet Sauvignon, yet almost understated for Latour. With wonderful ripe texture and chalky tannins, the 'Latour soil' shows more of the 'Latour style' of the past. Pure Cabernet over pure gravel, beautifully expressed.

Drink 2022 - 2050