Latour re-releases 1995 and 2005

After leaving the en primeurs last year, Latour has re-released its 1995 and 2005 Forts de Latour well in advance of this year’s campaign.

The 1995 has been released at £4,975 for a case of 12 and the 2005 at £1,750 also for 12, although they are also available in six packs.

The wines will only be available through “the world’s finest and most respected merchants”.

The wines can be found on Liv-ex (the 1995 has traded today and the 2005 late last week) for £4,150 and £1,500 a case.

The wines apparently have a special back label which guarantees their provenance but does it justify the 19% and 10% respective premiums that Latour has added?

Latour caused a stir before last year’s en primeurs with the news that the 2011s would be the last year the château was involved in the process and that all future wines would be released when “ready to drink”.

The 2011s, predictably, were one of the few success stories in that torrid campaign.

The commercial director, Jean Garandeau, later announced that it had always been François Pinault’s intention to leave the en primeurs at some point, and that the château had been holding back stock for a number of years in preparation.

“In 20 years time the idea is that we will sell 2009 and 2005 Latour because this is the time to drink them and they will be perfectly stored,” he said.

The 1995 was rated 96 points in Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. It was released in 1996 with a price of £737 a case and peaked at £5,480 in July 2011. It subsequently slumped to its current level.

The 2005 Forts de Latour had a release price of £641 inn 2006 and then rocketed in mid 2010 to £2,400 a case by February 2011.

It too has fallen by around £1,000 since then.