Chateau Latour-Martillac Grand Cru Classe De Graves Pessac-Leognan 2019 (750ml)

 

Rated 96 Points by Jeb Dunnuck

 

I loved the 2019 Château Latour-Martillac, and I under-rated it from barrel.  Revealing a dense ruby/plum color as well as a gorgeous bouquet of blackcurrants, black cherry, smoked tobacco, gravely earth, and chocolate, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a round, layered mouthfeel, supple tannins, and one heck of a finish.  It's beautifully done and will cruise for 25+ years in cold cellars.  It needs plenty of air if drinking any time soon.  Best after 2022.

 

Rated 94 Points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

 

Composed of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 8% Petit Verdot, harvested from the 19th of September to the 11th of October, the 2019 Latour Martillac came in at yields of 45 hectoliters per hectare with an alcohol of 14.2% and pH of 3.7.  It is being aged in French oak barrels, 40% new.  Deep garnet-purple in color, it sashays out of the glass with alluring scents of kirsch, Black Forest cake and warm cassis plus hints of lavender, forest floor, iron ore and tree bark.  Medium-bodied, the palate is elegant and refreshing, giving layers of black berries and mineral notions with a finely grained frame and lifted finish.  Gorgeous!  Range: (92-94)+

 

Rated 93 Points by Vinous

 

The 2019 Latour-Martillac was a little perplexing from the barrel samples that I received a few months back.  Now in bottle, here is the Pessac-Léognan I know, with ample blackberry, cedar, black olive and light marine scents on the nose.  The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, quite fleshy but still nicely structured, and showing fine backbone on the sappy, white-pepper- and sage-tinged finish.  Now this is promising.  (NM)  (12/2021)

 

Rated 93 Points by James Suckling

 

Sweet berry, spice, tobacco and dried rose-petal aromas.  Full-bodied with beautifully integrated tannins and a creamy, polished texture.   Refined and complex.  One of the best young bottles ever from here.  Best after 2025.

 

Rated 93 Points by Wine Enthusiast

 

Owned by the Kressmann family, a long-established Bordeaux negociant, this wine has ripe black fruits and dusty tannins.  Both rich and structured, this wine needs aging and will be ready from 2026.

 

Rated 90 Points by Wine Spectator

 

This compact yet accessible wine is juicy, offering a solid burst of steeped plum and black currant fruit laced with black licorice and ending with a tarry note.  Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot.  Drink now.

 

Chateau Latour-Martillac

 

Grand Cru Classe De Graves

 

Pessac-Leognan 2019

 

The best lots from the best parcels are chosen each year to integrate into the blending of the first wines for both red and white wines.  This stringent selection is driven by the direction of Loïc Kressmann and our winemaker, Valérie Vialard, with the help of one of the most renowned consultants in Bordeaux, Professor Denis Dubourdieu.

 

Composition:  72% Cabernet Sauvignon; 20% Merlot; 8% Petit Verdot

 

Tasting Notes

 

The color of this wine, with sparkling reflections, is intense and deep.  Its complex nose combines black fruits (blackcurrant, black cherry, blueberry) and smoky notes of the terroir, with a touch of spice and pepper.  The attack, soft and silky, evolves towards a full and harmonious mouth.  A nice balance between tannins and freshness, which develops through a very nice length.

 

Alcohol:  14.5%

 

The 2019 Vintage

 

The year 2019 was marked by a succession of climatic events which made this vintage quite technical.  After an early budbreak, we had a cold and wet Spring which led to a late flowering of the vines.  This took place in rather cool and rainy weather leading to coulure and millerandage, most notably on some plots of Merlot.  The heat wave then took over at the end of June with a particularly hot and dry July.  The vineyard resisted rather well to the drought and to the hydric stress which rapidly took hold.  The unexpected rain at the end of July enabled the full completion of veraison.

The cool nights of early September preserved the aromas and the freshness in the grapes and ensured a perfect state of health.  The red harvest took place in ideal climatic conditions from mid-September for the Merlot.  The light rains in mid-September allowed a slow and perfect ripeness of the Cabernet Sauvignon which was entirely vinified in the new vat room and which represents more than 2/3 of the blend.

 

Period of Harvest

Merlot:  September 19, 2019 to September 30, 2019

Petit Verdot:  October 4, 2019 to October 7, 2019

Cabernet Sauvignon:  September 30, 2019 to October 11, 2019

 

Classified Growth of the Graves

 

Long-time called for by the Winemakers Syndicate of the Graves, the classification of Grave wines finally took place in 1953 under the authority of the National Institute of Designation of Origin.

 

The classification recognised 16 châteaux, all in the north of the Graves region.

Château LaTour-Martillac is one of only six properties classified for both red and white wines.

 

A Unique Label

 

At the beginning of the 1930’s, Alfred Kressmann and his son Jean – both with remarkable artistic talents designed a label for their new vintage.

It was inspired by the Art Deco movement which was very in vogue at that time and created the famous design "gold and sandy stripes" which proudly adorns the bottles to this day.

 

A Wine of Crowning Success

 

It was not long before the wines of Château LaTour-Martillac gained widespread attention.
 

The 1934 red vintage was selected by the "Wine and Spirit Benevolent Society" of London for the celebration of the coronation of His Majesty King George the VI, King of England in December 1936.

 

 

Chateau Latour-Martillac

 

Thanks to the long involvement of generations of the Kressmann family, and the recognition shown in 1953 by the classification of Graves, the wines of Château LaTour-Martillac feature among the best of Pessac-Léognan.

The expansion of the range was drawn up by Tristan and Loïc Kressmann.

The second wines appeared at the end of the 1980’s under the label Lagrave-Martillac, followed by the Château Langlet, a magnificent property in the Graves appellation, acquired in 1999.

 

History

 

The estate takes its name from the tower which stands in the main courtyard of the château; it is the remnant of a fort built in the 12th century by the ancestors of Montesquieu. The structure occupied a strategic position and controlled the route between Bordeaux and Toulouse. The stones of the fort were used to build the existing château at the end of the 18th century.

 

The Favourite

 

of Edouard Kressmann

 

In 1871, the estate attracted the attention of Edouard Kressmann who had just founded his wine merchant business in Bordeaux.  He was seduced by the quality of the white wines grown on a remarkable gravelly hilltop with marked relief and outstanding exposure.

To this day one can still find in the plot grafted in 1884, the entire collection of Edouard Kressmann’s selection of grape varieties for his “Grave Monopole Dry,” as baptised by the Diva, Adelina Patti.  Enhanced by their great age these vine stocks embody the breed, verve and essence which still characterizes this wine.

 

A Time of Construction

 

Alfred and Jean Kressmann

 

Alfred Kressmann, eldest son of Edouard, acquired the property in 1930.  He changed the name: to avoid confusion with its illustrious namesake in the Medoc : Château Latour became Château LaTour-Martillac.

There then followed a long period of reconstruction.  The vineyard consists of a dozen hectares of which the majority was planted in white wine.  Without touching the oldest plots,
Alfred Kressmann added Cabernet Sauvignon to the merlot already in place.  Interrupted by the war, the reconstruction was continued after by Jean Kressmann, who succeeded his father in 1954.

Jean finally achieved the family dream to acquire the gravel slope, which separates the property from the village.  Thus the vineyard was gradually extended to nearly 30 hectares.
 

Jean Kressmann was a passionate winemaker and produced some excellent red wine vintages; 1959, 1961, 1966, 1970, 1975, 1982 and his favourite, the 1983.

 

A Time of Development

 

Tristan and Loïc Kressmann

 

Today, the 6 children of Jean Kressmann own the domain and continue on the family tradition.  Tristan and Loïc, the two younger sons, manage the estate with the assistance of the best wine consultants in Bordeaux.  With each following vintage they produce the best from this authentic Graves soil.

Since the 1980’s, they have increased the area planted in Sauvignon Blanc to compliment perfectly with the Semillon, the historical grape variety of the property.
 

For the red varieties, the tradition of blending Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot is now topped up with the excellent Petit Verdot variety, which is planted in one of the best gravel plots of the plateau of Martillac.

 

 

Rated 93 Points by Wine Enthusiast

 

Owned by the Kressmann family, a long-established Bordeaux negociant, this wine has ripe black fruits and dusty tannins.  Both rich and structured, this wine needs aging and will be ready from 2026.

 

 

 

Rated 90 Points by Wine Spectator

 

This compact yet accessible wine is juicy, offering a solid burst of steeped plum and black currant fruit laced with black licorice and ending with a tarry note.  Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot.  Drink now.