43% Cabernet-Sauvignon, 53% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot, 100% delicious !  

Is Chateau Latour the noblest of the Premier Grand Cru properties in Pauillac? Hard to quantify, perhaps, but its near-mythic reputation for sheer class and longevity helps it stand out from even Lafite and Mouton in that regard. Even Latour’s second wine, La Forts de Latour routinely sells for more than the Grand Vins of most Second and Third Class Classified Growths in Bordeaux. But did you know Chateau Latour has even a third wine? It’s an under-the-radar price performer yet offers up all of the polish and sophistication one associates with Latour itself. We love it and get it every time we can. Called simply Pauillac by Chateau Latour, it’s culled from the younger vines on the Latour estate blended with several barrels declassified from the Grand Vin and La Forts. Made since 1989, it’s sort of a mirror image of Latour. Merlot typically makes up around half of the blend in order to make the finished wine more approachable in its youth, avoiding the legendary tannins and monumental structure that makes Chateau Latour so requiring of decades in the cellar to mature. In the 2020 Pauillac, Merlot comprises 53% of the wine while Cabernet Sauvignon makes up 43%, with the rest being Petit Verdot. We were knocked out by just how savory and delicious this young 2020 shows right now. While obviously dark and introverted with noble depth and gravitas, the nose is already filled with that graphite-black currant combination I so love in my favorite Pauillacs (like Chateau Lynch-Bages) with notes of cedar shavings, camphor and melted black tar also adding complexity to a base of dense, dusky crushed blackberries, blackcurrants and plum. Sleek, polished to a fine finish, and a joy to drink (splash decanted) now, I am planning on a good old fashioned steak dinner to open my next bottle sometime later this summer. I will also keep some for the distant future too (right next to my last precious bottles of Lynch-Bages I can no longer afford) because nothing ages like a Latour, even its Third Label! Very highly recommended and a great wine with which to start a top-notch Bordeaux cellar.

James Suckling : This is quite chunky and fruity, with plums, berries, ash and hot stones on the nose and palate. It's full and flavorful. A juicy and intense red. Drink and enjoy. 93 points

Jeff Leve: Flowers, truffle, cedar, black currants, and cherries are already at work in the nose. The palate is vibrant, medium-bodied, fresh, and focused on its cassis, and plummy core of fruits that display tension, chalky tannins, red currants and citrus in the finish. This has just entered the start of its drinking window. Drink from 2025-2038. 93 points

Jeb Dunnuck: The 2020 Château Latour Pauillac is clearly outstanding, possessing an undeniable hint of Latour-like class and style. Juicy red and black currants, smoked tobacco, graphite, and lead pencil nuances all shine here, and it's medium to full-bodied, has a pure, layered mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and nicely integrated acidity. It's a beautiful Pauillac that will keep for two decades. 92 points

Lisa Perrotti-Brown: The 2020 Le Pauillac de Chateau Latour is a blend of 53% Merlot, 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple colored, it springs from the glass with vivacious notes of stewed blackberries, raspberry coulis, and preserved plums, leading to a savory undercurrent of tapenade, Provence herbs, and Sichuan pepper. The medium-bodied palate is elegant and classic with loads of soft-spoken savory layers and a firm, grainy texture, offset by refreshing acidity, finishing long and ferrous. So good. 92 points