2012 Château Latour-Martillac

(51% cabernet sauvignon, 42% merlot and 7% petit verdot; 5 g/l total acidity; pH 3.6; 38% new oak): Good full ruby. Initially restrained aromas of delicately smoky blackcurrant, ink and minerals turn more fruity and floral with air. Enters the mouth clean and mineral, then turns increasingly lush and seamless, with sweet black cherry and blackberry flavors nicely framed by juicy acidity. Finishes bright and long, with building weight and sweetness. A potentially outstanding, complex wine that has to be included in a short list of the most successful of the vintage. Another plus is all that flavor and style at a moderate 13% alcohol. Latour-Martillac has gone from the over-extracted, over-the-top wines of barely a decade ago to wines that are truer and more typical of their terroir .

Author: Ian D'Agata

Issue: May/June 2013