founded 1331 · François Pinault (Artémis Domaines), acquired 1993
Château Latour
Documented since 1331 and named for a 14th-century fortified tower ('La Tour') guarding the Gironde. Wine-growing fame came under the Ségur family in the 17th–18th centuries, and Latour was ranked a First Growth in the 1855 classification. After a period of British ownership from 1963, François Pinault acquired the estate in 1993; Frédéric Engerer has led it since 1998, with Hélène Genin as technical director.
92 hectares, 78 under vine (74.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23.8% Merlot, 1.8% Cabernet Franc, 0.2% Petit Verdot) at 10,000 vines/ha, some vines near 100 years old. The historic walled 'Enclos' (47 ha around the château, owned since 1850) supplies the grand vin exclusively. Farming: horses have worked Enclos parcels since 2008; the Enclos was farmed fully organically from 2015 and certified organic in 2018, with a large share biodynamic. Vinification is parcel-by-parcel in 80 temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats (12–164 hl); malolactic in vat.
The wines
- Château Latour (grand vin)Exclusively from the Enclos.
- Les Forts de LatourSecond wine, first vintage 1966 — but with its own dedicated vineyards: plots outside the Enclos (notably parcels planted from 1963 on land owned since 1850, inland toward Château Haut-Batailley), plus young-vine and declassified Enclos lots.
- Pauillac de Château LatourThird wine.