2016 Chateau LaTour Martillac Rouge (750ml)

Cabernet Sauvignon from Pessac-Leognan, Bordeaux, France

B-21 Top Recommendation
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Sharing the exceptional terroir of Pessac-Leognan’s most prestigious estates including First Growth Haut-Brion, here’s an exciting opportunity for Bordeaux lovers and collectors to acquire top vintages of Chateau LaTour Martillac’s powerful, Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated Grand Vin Rouge and a top vintage of the LaTour Martillac Blanc delivered in perfect provenance, some ready to enjoy and all built for decades of aging at unbeatable bargain pricing.

Owned and managed by the Kressman family since the 1930’s, Chateau LaTour Martillac is named for its iconic tower in the main courtyard, a remnant of a fort built in the 12th century to defend the route between Bordeaux and Toulouse near the village of Martillac. Located southeast of the small Left Bank town of Leognan, the sustainably farmed vineyards for the Rouge span 45 hectares of vines averaging 25 years of age while the 10 hectares for the Blanc are planted mostly to Sauvignon Blanc with some Semillon vines over 140 years of age. A superb dry white Bordeaux blend, the crisp and enticing 94 pt. 2021 Chateau LaTour Martillac Blanc is mostly Sauvignon Blanc with a third Semillon, “a gorgeous white” according to Jeb Dunnuck that’s built to evolve over the next decade. Moving to the reds, the 95 pt. 2020 Chateau LaTour Martillac Rouge is described as “quintessentially Pessac-Leognan” by Neal Martin Vinous with nuances of flinty minerality and “a bright future ahead,” while the 96 pt. 2019 LaTour Martillac Rouge is a “superlative LaTour Martillac” according to Inside Bordeaux’s Jane Anson with “beautiful depth to the flavors,” declared “one of the best young bottles ever” from the estate by James Suckling. “Laden with juicy fruit and savory layers” according to the Wine Advocate, Antonio Galloni of Vinous calls the 95 pt. 2018 LaTour Martillac Rouge “unusually sumptuous” and the 94 pt. 2016 LaTour Martillac Rouge offers fresh concentrated dark fruit with precise acidity and a “gutsy finish” according to the Wine Spectator’s James Molesworth. Jane Anson of Inside Bordeaux describes the 95 pt. 2015 Chateau LaTour Martillac Rouge as “powerful, finessed and deeply textured” while the 94 pt. 2009 Chateau Latour Martillac Rouge that’s “meant for aging” according to the Wine Enthusiast’s Roger Voss is now ready to enjoy over the next few decades, among the Wine Spectator’s Top 100 wines of 2012.

Garnering exceptional ratings vintage over vintage, Chateau Latour-Martillac is a standout value among its higher profile Pessac-Leognan peers, these top-rated selections remarkably priced for Bordeaux lovers to pull the cork without hesitation and enjoy their lengthy evolution over the coming decades.

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93WA

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A superb vintage all over Bordeaux, and absolutely one that you should be searching out with the Crus Classés de Graves. You can wait for this to soften for sure, because the tannins are pretty racy right now, squaring up to the blackcurrant and blackberry fruit rather than cradling it, but there is such a charm to its confidence that I am pretty tempted to say go for it now with a few hours in a carafe. Liqourice, cocoa beans, crème de cassis, espresso and a ton of brambled autumnal fruits. 40% new oak

95 points, Jane Anson (Mar 2022)

This is very perfumed with blackberry and blueberry aromas, but shows a hot-stone and blanched-almond undertone. Medium-to full-bodied with tight and silky tannins that are extremely polished and beautiful. Love the length and balance to this. Try after 2022.

94 points, James Suckling (Feb 2019)

The 2016 Latour Martillac is medium to deep garnet-purple in color with warm plums, kirsch and redcurrant jelly on the nose with touches of bay leaves, iron ore and black soil. Medium-bodied with a well-sustained mid-palate of muscular fruit, it has a firm backbone of fine-grained tannins and wonderful freshness, finishing very long.

93 points, Wine Advocate (Nov 2018)

The 2016 Latour-Martillac offers classic Pessac-Léognan scents on the nose: black fruit, black olive and a touch of sage, plus hints of blue fruit that emerge with time. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit and fine acidity. A little compact toward the finish, but with good persistence. My feeling is that this will close down quite soon after bottling, but there is a great wine here.

93 points, Neal Martin, Vinous (Jan 2019)

A structured wine backed by plenty of black-currant fruits, this is initially austere. Its richness needs time to develop and turn into the classically structured wine that this estate does so well. Drink from 2025.

93 points, Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast (May 2019)

The 2016 Latour-Martillac is deep garnet in color. It flies out of the glass with energetic notes of crushed red and black currants, warm plums, and pencil lead, plus hints of black olives and truffles. Medium-bodied, the palate is tightly wound with red and black fruit layers intertwined with mineral sparks, framed by grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with great length.

93 points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Independent (Dec 2022)

Alcohol By Volume: 13.5%

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$39.88

Compare At: $44.99

60+ bottles in stock. Ships in 1 to 2 business days.

This item is available in original wood case. Would you like to include the wood case in your order? There is an additional $12.00 shipping fee for wood cases.

Available in Original Wood Case of 6

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