Description

Description

Ratings: 90 (Wine Advocate), 100 (Wine Spectator)

The bottle was part of a Newport Beach, CA wine bottle collector collection. The collection was stored in an under ground, temperature and humidity controlled cellar. The wines were purchased through a local wine store and sommelier service. The collection was over 500 bottles primarily of high end Napa Cabs and First Growths. Currently about 30 of the wines have been opened, all in sound condition.

From Cellar Tracker

The color remains opaque which surprises us. Perfect textbook old claret nose displaying intense concentrated red fruit with a hint of black, cherry pie, crème de cassis, leather, lead pencil, truffle, strong cedar, sous bois, a hint of VA, sweet spices and earthy mineral. Unbelievable concentration, still showing so much fruit, incredibly rich, round and dense, perfect amount of acidity and mineral, and the finish that never ends. There is so much fruit and structure that a couple guys comment that it can be mistaken for a thirty year old wine. There is incredibly sweet red fruit which I only find in fifty plus year old wines. About one seventh of the bottle is sediment. With air, the fruit gets even sweeter. This is incredibly rich and complex. This is more concentrated than the monumental 59 and 61. Since I am passionate about great old wines, this is perfect for me.

This was firing on all 12 cylinders tonight. Opened in the AM, decanted at dinner time. Darker than one would expect from a 78 yo wine. Aromatically stunted initially, but abruptly expanded into a panoply of deep aroma from flowers to fresh berries. Undoubtedly Latour, but more ripe and ethereal than any other vintages I’ve had. It just progressed with a change in complexity every time I took a dip into the glass. A wonderful experience and glad to have had this with my friends that gathered.

Wow, just spot on tonight and a great pairing with duck a l’orange. A real treat, and as bizarre as it sounds, for bottles stored like this, this still has at least 10 or more years ahead of this.

It was a Latour vertical tasting, so I drank it alongside with 01, 82, 61, 59. (blind tasting)

Perfect looking bottle. Clean label, ullage between base neck and high-fill. Considering the condition of the foil and cork, I would say the bottle was ex-cellar released in the 70’s or 80’s, having been extremely well stored. The cork was half soaked and the wine was in pristine condition for 1945.
Opened 4 hours before serving. After checking the condition, I sealed the bottle immediately with a new cork. I used Riedel Sommelier Bordeaux glass, and it was a good choice.

Nose:
The nose was totally different from other four, letting everyone immediately recognize what 1945 was.
I felt like being in the woods looking down vineyards in the early hazy morning, smelling damp earth, tree trunks, mushrooms, moss, and some ripe fruits fallen to the ground and being fermented naturally, and herbs and wild flowers from the bushes.
All these noses were completed in one entity, but whispering individually. The intensity of the nose was the strongest among the five vintages. No sign of negativeness whatsoever.

Palate:
Medium to full acidity, almost melt but still present tannins, somewhere between silky and velvety mouthfeel, light yet full.
Literally MELLOW and very, very long aftertaste(I can’t just refer to it as ‘finish’), which lasted more than a minute.

The wine lasted for 3 hours in such a huge glass, proving its power and quality from a legendary vintage.
It was the WOTN of 6 people.