Château Latour 1920

Château Latour 1920 - Pauillac, 1er Grand Cru Classé

Introduction: The iron lord of the 20th century

Château Latour 1920is much more than a historic wine - it is a contemporary witness to an era of upheaval, a rare opportunity to experience the soul of early 20th century Pauillac. The 1920s are considered one of the best decades in the history of Bordeaux; the 1920 vintage opened this golden decade and proved that Château Latour could manifestits unmistakable DNA of power, longevity and architectural rigoureven in a climatically challenging year. Legend has it that the famous wine writer Harry Waugh said as early as 1966 that the 1920 Latour surpassed the Lafite of its time, and Eduard Cruse even proclaimed it the best of all first growths. Today, over a century later, this wine is one of the world's mythical collector's items.

Vintage 1920 in Bordeaux: An alpine hurdle with a golden autumn

The 1920 vintage in Bordeaux was a rollercoaster ride. After a perfect flowering, the entire year was in danger of failing: an exceptionally cold July and August brought rainy, red-promoting weather, which led to significant harvest losses. What saved the vintage was a sun-drenched, dry September, which allowed the remaining grapes to ripen into a small but highly concentrated harvest.

The result was a vintage that was very different from the opulent 1929s. The 1920s wines are less rich and full-bodied, but extremely elegant, delicate and distinguished. The year was challenging for the sweet wines, but the red Grands Crus showed exceptional quality, with the Latours and Cheval Blancs beingconsidered the most remarkable in their class.

Château Latour 1920: Tasting profile

Tasting a bottle of 1920 is an extremely rare and delicate endeavour. However, a perfectly stored, intact bottle leaves an indelible impression.

Colour

In an intact bottle, the 1920 Latour is a medium to deep garnet red with amber-coloured, brick-red edges. The colour reveals the almost uncanny youthfulness and vitality of this wine, which is over 100 years old.

Nose

The bouquet is legendary and of breathtaking complexity. Tasting notes from experts and collectors paint a picture of lush, dark fruit, enhanced by ripe wood and spice notes:

• Primary fruit: a beguiling explosion of dark sour cherries, plum jam and ripe blackberries. One taster described it as "beautiful, rich and sexy".

• Spice & herbs: Classic flavours of mint chocolate, cedar wood, coffee and sweet spices such as nutmeg and allspice dominate the background.

• Development: The tertiary notes are fully integrated: Tobacco, leather, graphite, truffle and a fine smoky note. A sweet "crème fraîche" note emphasises the surprising freshness.

Palate

What tasters find most fascinating is the balance between apparent age and youthful energy:

• Texture & structure: the wine is full-bodied, silky and has a surprisingly dense, mouth-coating texture. Despite its age, it still has a present, fine-grained tannin structure.

• Acidity: The backbone of the wine is its juicy, vibrant freshness, which is responsible for its exceptional length.

• Palate: The flavours of the nose unfold in luscious layers: blackcurrant, dark cherries, followed by chocolate, cedar and a hint of walnut.

• Finish: The finish is exceptionally long, complex and characterisedby a salty minerality. One taster wrote: "I would blindly mistake it for a 1990 first growth, wow".

The unique "Enclos" signature

The exceptional longevity of Latour 1920 is no coincidence, but the result of its unique terroir. The wine comes from the "Enclos ", the original 47-hectare centrepiece of the estate, located directly on the banks of the Gironde. This parcel with its deep gravel soils gives the wine its legendary power, concentration and structured architecture.

The 1920 vintage was also a historic turning point for the estate: around 1920, the grape harvest on the American Unterlaken was completed. Much of the vineyard at that time was young and vigorous, which could explain the concentrated fruit of the wine.

Rarity & auction prices

Château Latour 1920 is an absolute rarity. Bottles rarely appear on the market, and when they do, it is usually only in single bottles or in auctions of private cellars.

• Auction records: At Christie's in Hong Kong, a bottle was sold for HK$ 48,000 (approx. € 5,800) at a rarities auction . This significantly exceeded the estimate of HK$ 20,000-30,000.

• Market prices: Depending on its condition and provenance, the wine is offered forover €3,000 per bottle in specialised shops. For example, a bottle was listed on SoDivin with a mid-shoulder fill level for around €3,450 including tax before it was sold out.

• Fill level: The bottles often have a mid-shoulder fill level, which is acceptable for such an age, but indicates slight evaporation.

Maturity & recommendation

Current drinking maturity

Château Latour 1920 reached its plateau of peak maturity many years ago. It is now at the height of its complexity and should not be cellared any further. A tasting in 2014 was awarded 100 points - one of the best wines this taster has ever tasted.

Serving recommendation (The ritual)

1. Decanting: Decant carefully to separate the natural sediment from the clear liquid. No prolonged aeration to avoid destroying the delicate flavours.

2. Temperature: 16-17 °C.

3. Food: The wine is the food. Only fine, subtly flavoured accompaniments such as a piece of mature Comté, game fowl or a simple fillet steak are suitable .

4. Glass: A large, balloon-shaped Bordeaux glass.

Conclusion: A wine of the century of minimalism

Château Latour 1920 is not an opulent, sweet powerhouse like the great 1929s. It is the embodiment of a different era of Bordeaux: concentrated but elegant; powerful but delicate; rich but with a cool, almost ascetic finesse.

Opening a bottle like this is no ordinary pleasure, but a ritual of travelling back in time, offering a rare, unadulterated glimpse of the style of Pauillac over 100 years ago - a time when Latour was only just putting down its modern roots. For the serious collector, it is the Holy Grail; for those who get to taste it, it is an unforgettable, transcendent experience. A wine that proves that the great classics do not age, but only transform.