Tasted in Beaune with director, Christophe Deola, 15 December 2017.
Maison Louis Latour
18 Rue des Tonneliers
21200 Beaune
Tel: +33 3 80 24 81 00
www.louislatour.com
Christophe on 2017:
“With 2017 we are very happy. I’m very sure that it’s a great vintage in white as the the grapes were fine and had great phenolic maturity. Despite waiting after the rain, the acidity was stable – there were good concentrations too. The reds were mature and well-balanced. A little over 6 bunches per vine was achieved so whilst the wines are not like 2015 or 2016 there’s still a really good concentration – the lowest maturity in Corton for instance was 13.1° – I think that agreeable and balanced wines will come from this – a 2009 style will be very possible.”
The 2016 vintage:
“2016 is really great vintage – there’s concentration and freshness. Hard to believe it could have been like that earlier in the vintage, considering the frost and such a low morale. The terroir is much more forward in 2016 when compared to 2015.”
The wines…
Perhaps the position in the wines’ elevage, but relatively few imposing wines today – the whites showed better – maybe they could have been even better if they’d been served at a better temperature.
2016 Savigny-lès-Beaune
Bottled. Bought grapes.
Deep, concentrated, almost meaty aromas – yet with a certain attractive freshness. Big in the mouth, supple, growing in both concentration and intensity. This is quite a wine – a little salinity in the finish. Non-standard, absolutely impressively concentrated Savigny…
2016 Beaune 1er Vignes-Franches
A silky width of aroma – tiny, pure, concentrated berry aromas. Big volume in the mouth, a little less depth of texture but concentrated all the same. A little tannin and a lot of melting flavour. This is really excellent!
Not yet bottled. Just underneath the Château Corton Grancey, a large plot of about 4 hectares. Only domaine Roux in St.Aubin the other producer.
Oof – like a redcurrant concentrate – purity but it’s hard to compute the concentration. A little gas, but width and freshness of flavour – really some complexity. A wine to wait for and so juicy in the finish too – bravo!
2016 Volnay 1er En Chevret
Will wait for this structure to soften a little longer so probably will wait to bottle in March
A little more width, a little more relaxed nose – but still a pure punch of fruit. Direct, melting flavour, the structure is quite forward too but will fade – this has so much energy and a super complexity. Super wine, finishing more composed but still fresh…
2016 Pommard 1er Les Epenots
Bottled.
A tighter aromatic but with fine depth., very slowly opening pure fruit that’s accented with spice. Big, mouth-filling wine of freshness and structure – then slowly growing flavour comes to the fore – this is melting and delicious flavour but secondary to the structure today – in 2 years it will be the other way round – it will be very good but it’s hard today, despite a great finish…
2016 Vosne-Romanée 1er Les Beaux Monts
Wider, certainly a little spice to the dark red fruit – slowly growing with complexity in the glass. Ooh, now that’s a great texture, melting flavour over the palate. Concentrated, cushioned (just a little) complex and absolutely delicious flavour. Very lovely wine.
2016 Château Corton-Grancey
Wide, deep, concentrated – great pure fruit on the nose. Silk, narrow entry but growing, growing width, depth and concentration – the intensity is not as insistent as some but that’s probably a good thing. Really a lovely mid and finishing palette of flavour . Composed but with a lot to give. Super length…
2016 Corton, Clos du Roi
This is a surprisingly similar nose to the last wine – fine notes of complexity but not that different. Directly more volume and freshness in the mouth though – a cooler fruit but layers of flavour. This will be super wine and a step up from the Corton Grancey this year – really a great finish…
2016 Chambertin Cuvée Héritiers Latour
After the Cortons this is both a more modest and a more elegant nose – finer complexity of fruit and floral notes here. Fresh, fine volume – more cushioned volume than the Clos du Roi – developing flavour, complex flavour. A very elegant Chambertin but of depth and undoubted complexity. Long, long…
2016 Charmes-Chambertin
Negoce, more exuberant so after Chambertin! This bottled, the last three not.
Some good aromatic energy – fine depth of pure, dark-red fruit. Yes lots of energy here – every part of the mouth being filled – fine fruit framed with a more evident tannin than the Chambertin – long almost chewy finish but a fine finish – long…
Les Blancs…
2016 Pernand-Vergelesses 1er En Caradeux
Not yet bottled.
A toasty, reductive, start to the nose. Too cold, but growing in both volume and complexity – this is really rather good on the palate – lots of interest here I like very much for its good texture and energy. Lovely wine.
2016 Meursault 1er Château Blagny
Hmm a nice width – saline and interesting. Again, far too cold – I have to hold it in the mouth some time – this has a nice complexity, very Meursault, though I might have thought a little more interest for a 1er in 2016. But the finish is fine enough. A modest wine today…
2016 Meursault 1er Perrières
A tighter, more concentrated nose – subtle but finely pure aromatic impressions. Far too cold. Good texture, a wine of direction, melting complexity – this is rather fine. A little grain of tannin here. Lovely in the finish – very long.
2016 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Caillerets
Hmm – a little vibration in the aroma here – I already know that this is going to be good! Supple, really bubbling with fine, fresh complexity – width of flavour too. A lovely wine and a more forward and communicative wine but not finer than the Perrières.
Not bottled yet – from higher parcels
A deep and fresh nose – a little toasty. Directly more volume, freshness and energy! How was that packed into a bottle? Still a hint of toasty reduction on the palate but this is slowly melting over the palate as it warms, muscled but not fat. Really a super wine. Bravo!
2016 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Sous le Puits
Hmm – a different style of nose – here there are more flowers and fine points of citrus complexity. Supple, concentrated – really a density of flavour here – despite the freshness, it’s practically too much. Long. Impressive but far from my favourite…
2016 Puligny-Montrachet 1er Les Referts
There are no flowers here but the small notes of complexity are as good as any wine so far – just an accent in the core of the ripe fruit to come. Lots of volume in the mouth but here it’s really beautifully delivered, layers of flavour some agrumes, almost some mandarin, and a sweetened but absolutely delicious finish. Excellent!
2016 Corton-Charlemagne
Such an impressive combination of freshness and finely delivered citrus complexity. A big concentration again – more in the direction of the sous les puits than the referts to start, but this is something that slowly melts – this is not yet bottled like the last two so it has more elevage, but there’s already a great mid to finishing flavour – really expressive and fine. Super!
A hint of firework reduction but what a nose, what a complexity – wow! The reduction is quite forward on the palate too but this is not yet bottled. A finer delivery of flavour today than the Charlemagne (like the Referts vs the Sous les Puits) and such a wide and impressively concentrated yet fabulously balanced middle. This will clearly be a great wine. Bravo.