The Cork

Very moldy on top with no signs of seepage. I was shocked at how soggy it was, but oddly, it had a dry patch near the bottom at the core. I wrestled with it as it broke into three pieces, and as I gently slid the last piece out I began to face the strong possibility this bottle was cooked.

The Color

Deep, gorgeous ruby with only slightly bricked edges. The brownness really showed only when I poured the thin stream from the decanter to the glass. Other than that, it looked incredible in the bottom of the decanter and in the bottom of the Riedel Sommeliers, flickering in the candlelight. There was, of course, substantial muddy sediment in the bottom of the bottle


The Nose

I decanted it and let it sit for thirty minutes afraid to smell it. When I did take a whiff I was very relieved because the wine was very much alive and nowhere near vinegar. The nose was not powerful at first, but toward the end of the bottle it had pronounced tar and floral aromas, as well as something I can't really describe, but I smelled the same thing when I tried the '61 Haut Brion

The Palate

The most noticeable attribute was that it still had plenty of life (tannin) in it. The fruit and secondary flavors(mineral, minty vegetation, tobacco) really showed after it sat for a couple hours. The balance was seamless and the complexity was intellectually stimulating, but unfortunately the finish just never stood up and claimed itself.

Overall

The wine didn't blow me away and it didn't go as well with the grilled beef as a big California Cab does, but it was a real treat to drink something older than me and to realize just how well they did things in France back then. I was able to pick apart the primary and secondary profiles and notice how they evoloved so smoothly over the three hours it was exposed to air. I couldn't believe it's youthfulness in color and in tannic bite and I am certainly glad I bought this bottle. My next adventure will be with an '82 Gruaud Larose--I'm told that is gonna be much different. . .

There's a lot of bottle variation with the '70 Latour. Mosty of the times I've had it, it's been wonderful, a mid 90 pointer. Sometimes it's just good wine.

Here's my TN on the 1970 Latour

--- 03/08/03
1970 Chateau Latour
immediate impression: right out of the bottle the wine's glory was apparent; in no
time at all the bouquet of dark cherries and vanilla blossomed; any cedar tones
were overshadowed by rich vanilla. The color showed virtually no substantive trace
of wine's age - amazing - still rich, deep red with the edges slightly orange (not
approaching any degree of brown). Beautifully balanced. Tannins are well-integrated
but you can't forget they are there (perhaps indicative of an ever-so-small ratio of
slightly hard/unripe tannins?) Unlike the 86 Lafite being focused in dark fruits, this
seemed brighter, more approachable, and slightly lighter.

After letting the wine breathe more. The cedar started to peek out from the vanilla,
imparting a rich velvety quality.

My impression of the Latour is that it is a magnificent wine, but likely at the apex
of its peak. Considering this wine was likely stored in ideal conditions (generator-
backed-up 55-58F cellar) since it was originally purchased, I can't say that I have
high hopes for this wine improving with additional age.

I had this wine last Thursday (10/2/03) and with the mention of the bottle variation, I would venture to say we got one of the great ones. The 1970 Latour was smokin'. No bricking, but instead a brilliant dark ruby red color. This was one of those wines you love to just keep your nose in as you realize you are smelling nuances and complexities only realized after 33 years of bottle age, its a great thing. Anise, graphite, tobacco, blackberries, glycerin, earth and mushroom in multiple layers never ceased. The finish is long and lingering. A mature Bordeaux 96 points.

I had this wine for the tenth timelast night at dinner with a colleague. I decanted it just before leaving the house and it was tasted about a half hour later. No notes were taken. My recollection:

The cork was saturated almsot to the top, but the fill was excellent. During careful decanting the smells of baking fruit, leather, and cedar filled the area. I've found a little bottle variation with this wine, but this one was close to perfect. Upon first sip, the sensation of warmth was incredible, second only, for me, to that of the 1945 La Mission. The wine was incredibly rich with great depth of dark fruit. I'd have guessed this to be decades younger than it is. One of my wines of the year so far. 98

It sounds wonderful.

Sounds good, but the 2 bottles that I had were very nice bottles of wine but not that nice.

I've had the wine twice. The first time it showed near-perfect and was outrageously good, as Board-O described his most recent bottle. I had it several weeks ago and it was good but not a wow wine.