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If there was any doubt that there was still soul left in Bordeaux, consider the

Kressman family. They’ve been putting their heart and soul into the family business known as Chateau Latour-Martillac since 1871. The current owners, Tristan and Loïc are the fifth generation to farm and make wine from the beautiful spot on the Martillac plain, one of the most revered vineyard areas in the entire Graves region. The Latour in the name comes from the tower attached to the chateau that was part of a fort that dates from the 12th century that used to guard the road from Bordeaux to Toulouse. The Kressmans farm a 54-hectare vineyard of which 45 is dedicated to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot and nine to Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon that produce the excellent white that first seduced Edouard Kressman to purchase the vineyard. When the wines of Graves were classified in 1953, Latour-Martillac was named Grand Cru Classes, a tribute to the fantastic soils underneath these vines. The winery’s Grand Vin rouge 2021 was produced from 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 8% Petit Verdot, a similar cepages to the Meyney above. The difference between the two wines is owed to that unique Pessac soil- a mosaic of gravel dating from the Quaternary, including flint, quartz, Lydian and jasper that provide the wine with its pronounced graphite and mineral-edged black fruit component. The Merlot is grown in a separate part of the estate where there is more loose gravel and clay giving it rounder fruit, an essential component to building up a midpalate silkiness and elegance. You can taste the mineral here, though. Where the Meyney is iron-y and redolent of a redder sort of character, you’ll find the Latour-Martillac from the same vintage altogether darker, more obsidian and sleeker. Pessac (and Margaux, just the other side of the city of Bordeaux) are my two favorite regions in Bordeaux as I love chasing after that lovely essence of cedar and graphite I so often find there and as I was tasting candidates for this month’s Super, the Latour-Martillac just spoke to me. I hope it does you too!

Validation Department:

Wine Enthusiast: This estate, on the edge of the village of Martillac, has produced a fine, structured wine. The wood aging has lent its polish, giving the wine richness alongside the acidity as well as good potential. Drink from 2027. 94 points

Vinous: The 2021 Latour-Martillac has an attractive nose: brambly red fruit, loam and light cedar scents. Maybe conservative in style, yet it conveys purity and terroir. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins and fine acidity. A slightly more sinewy Pessac-Léognan, yet it coheres in the glass. Its substance suggests that it will repay bottle age. 93 points