CHATEAU LATOUR 1er Grand Cru Classe, Pauillac 2004 Bottle

Description

The 2004 Château Latour has garnered outstanding praise from critics, receiving 97 points from James Suckling for its complex aromas of black fruit, olives, and wet earth, combined with hints of dried lavender and cloves. The medium to full-bodied palate presents firm, tight-grained tannins and great freshness, finishing long and structured. Wine Enthusiast also awarded it 97 points, highlighting its structure and sweet cassis flavours supported by dry tannins, indicative of its evolution into a classic Latour. The Wine Advocate rated it 95 points, praising its graphite bouquet and sultry palate, suggesting it requires additional aging. Decanter noted its silky texture and bright red fruit aroma with a 94-point rating, making this vintage an exceptional choice for collectors and enthusiasts alike.

*****

JAMES SUCKLING 97 points
This has aromas of black fruit, olives, wet earth, dried lavender, cloves and bark. Bitter chocolate and walnuts, too. It’s medium-to full-bodied with firm, tight-grained tannins. Structured, with great freshness and length. Cedar notes on the lighter mid-palate. Still a little tight and chewy. Try from 2024.

WINE ENTHUSIAST 97 points
There are tannins, structure and power, but also supreme elegance. The 2004 acidity comes through in the sweet cassis flavors, supported at the back by dry tannins. Currently, the wine is closed up, losing some of its fresh fruit, but this is a moment in its slow evolution towards a classic Latour. — Roger Voss

THE WINE ADVOCATE 95 points
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Drink Date: 2020 - 2045
The 2004 Latour is perhaps evolving slower than I expected, although it remains one of the finest Left Bank wines of the vintage. It has that quintessential graphite-scented bouquet intermixed with blackberry and cedar, although the liquorice note that I observed previously has receded. Again, there is wonderful definition. The palate is full-bodied but surprisingly more sultry than I expected, especially here where I was able to directly compare it with the other 2004 First Growths. It delivers the "authority" you expect from Latour, although I might be inclined just to give it another 2-3 years in bottle. Tasted September 2016.

DECANTER 94 points
Tasted by: Charles Curtis MW
(at Atlanta, 01 Mar 2022)
Part of Bordeaux 2004: A 20-year retrospective
Drinking Window: 2022 - 2042
This wine proved me wrong about the 2004 vintage – it is utterly delicious, with an incredibly forward and silky, bright red fruit aroma on the initial attack. Picking began on 23rd September and continued into the second week of October, giving an elegant, fresh wine. It lacks perhaps a bit of the depth of other recent vintages but makes up for it with the silky, gracious texture that is compellingly lovely.

VINOUS 94 points
Bright ruby-red. Classic aromas of currant, plum, graphite and minerals. Suave and smooth in the mouth, with a compelling sweetness and lushness for the vintage. At once easygoing and wonderfully complex, conveying a powerful soil character. The finish is ripely tannic, sweet and very long. This is wonderfully expressive today but the young 2006 may have even longer aging potential. Along with Chateau Margaux, my candidate for wine of the vintage - Stephen Tanzer