Drunk from magnum, the 1994 Latour is showing brilliantly, bursting with aromas of dark fruits, English walnuts, cigar wrapper, loamy soil and woodsmoke. Medium to full-bodied, deep and fleshy, it's layered and concentrated, with sweet tannins, succulent acids and a long, sapid finish. The wine of the vintage in Bordeaux, I just wish I owned a case.

Drink Date: 2014 - 2034

William Kelley, The Wine Advocate (February 2022)

Drunk from magnum, the 1994 Latour is showing brilliantly, bursting with aromas of dark fruits, English walnuts, cigar wrapper, loamy soil and woodsmoke. Medium to full-bodied, deep and fleshy, it's layered and concentrated, with sweet tannins, succulent acids and a long, sapid finish. The wine of the vintage in Bordeaux, I just wish I owned a case.

This is an interesting as well as great vintage for Latour. As indicated in my barrel tasting report, Latour's 1994 possesses an atypically high percentage of Merlot (27%) in the final blend. Because of this, the wine appears to have a sweeter, more fleshy texture than is typical for a young Latour, but do not make the mistake of thinking this will be a commercially-styled, easy to drink wine. It exhibits an opaque dark ruby/purple color, and a backward, intense textbook nose of walnut and cassis scents complemented by smoky pain grille notes that build in the glass. This full-bodied, powerful, layered Latour reveals high tannin, but no bitterness or astringency. The superb purity, fabulous precision, and remarkable length should ensure 35-40 years of longevity. Readers will find more fat, flesh, and glycerin than usual for a young Latour (save for such great vintages as 1982 and 1990), but don't be deceived, this wine requires 8-10 years of cellaring.

Anticipated maturity: 2005-2035

Robert M. Parker, Jr., The Wine Advocate (January 1998)

Very deep ruby-red. Pungent, inky, nutty aromas of blackcurrants and minerals; very sexy oak treatment gives the nose a wonderful sweetness. Big, minerally, and shapely, with lovely purity of dark berry flavor. Has clarity and grip, but not quite the richness of the '95. The tannins build in the glass, but are in harmony with the wine's middle palate material. Uncanny length for the vintage.

The Chateau Latour 1994 is one of the better wines of the vintage, although not as good as Margaux. It has a typical, austere nose of blackberry, tobacco, mint and cedar, that coffee bean element less tangible on this occasion. There palate is compact at first, but opens to reveal an austere First Growth with good weight considering the vintage, foursquare and correct towards the off-dry, cedar and tobacco finish that is missing a little length. Still, this is a very fine, if rather serious and conservative Latour.

Drink 2012-2020

Neal Martin, The Wine Advocate (January 2012)

Classic Cabernet style. Intense aromas of plums and cherries, with hints of new wood. Full-bodied, with juicy and ripe tannins and a long finish. Very well-structured.--Latour vertical.

Best after 2003.

James Suckling, The Wine Spectator (August 2000)

Quite deep, but with a lighter rim. More muted nose. Less fragrant at first, though it opened out in the glass. Big and blobby. Chewy end. Again, quite stern. Slightly smudgy. Lots of tannin. (JR)