2020 Chateau Latour Les Forts de Latour Pauillac 3pk Sampler (3x750ml)

To understand Les Forts de Latour, one must first understand the fortress from which it hails. Since 1331, Château Latour has stood as the immovable sentinel of Pauillac. It is the only First Growth to have remained consistently at the pinnacle of quality for centuries, surviving the Hundred Years' War and the French Revolution to become the ultimate benchmark of winemaking authority. This is the estate that famously walked away from the En Primeur system, declaring that its wines would only be released when they were truly ready for the world.

Les Forts de Latour is the crown prince of this dynasty. Born of the same royal lineage and produced with the same fanatical precision as the Grand Vin, it is far more than a "second wine." It is a powerhouse in its own right, sourced from a specific selection of historic plots—including the century-old vines of Petit Batailley—that sit just outside the legendary L’Enclos.

The 2020 vintage is a high-voltage masterpiece. Forged in a year of shimmering heat and legendary intensity, it captures the raw, muscular energy of the Latour terroir with breathtaking clarity. While the Grand Vin demands decades of silence, the 2020 Les Forts is the aggressive, sophisticated thrill-seeker—offering that signature Latour "iron fist" but with a heart of dark, explosive fruit that is ready to dominate your glass today.

In the glass, it is a symphony of architectural precision. It hits the palate with a landslide of crème de cassis, liquid graphite, and scorched earth, all wrapped in a structure of tannins so fine they feel like black silk. It possesses the staggering mineral tension that only Latour’s gravelly ridges can provide—a cool, saline breeze blowing through a core of dense, sun-drenched blackberries.

This is the insider’s choice. It is the wine that allows you to touch the hem of the First Growth garment, offering a masterclass in seductive violence and aristocratic grace. Built to evolve magnificently over the next 30 years, yet vibrating with enough energy to steal the spotlight at any table right now, the 2020 Les Forts de Latour is the power of the tower, uncaged.