Louis Latour Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru La Garenne

Description

Louis Latour Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru La Garenne is one of Louis Latour’s many 1er Cru rated Puligny Montrachets. The La Garenne Vineyard is located just above Champgains, on marl and limestone soils and benefits from an ideal south-easterly exposure.

The Latour family have long been established in Burgundy’s wine trade. They began as vine growers in the village of Aloxe-Corton as early as 1768 and went on to establish today’s business, Maison Louis Latour in 1797. Today they are one of the region’s most famous names creating wines from their own 50 hectare domaine in the Côte d’Or and from grapes and wines purchased through the negociant arm of the business. The company has been in family ownership for 11 generations and is now led by the 7th Louis Latour. He is ably supported by Chief winemaker Jean Charles Thomas, and Denis Fetzmann and Boris Champy who run the Domaine.

Puligny-Montrachet is the 216 hectare geographical middleman of the white wine villages, bordered by Meursault to the north and by Chassagne-Montrachet to the south with which it harbours 5 of the 6 white Grands Crus in Burgundy.

The grapes for the Louis Latour Puligny Montrachet 1er Cru La Garenne come from a vineyard with an average of 35 year old vines. The soils are limestone and scree. After a hand harvest the grapes are vinified in the traditional Burgundian manner in oak barrels with complete malolactic fermentation. The wine is matured for 8 to 10 months ageing in medium-toasted French oak barrels, 50% new, from Louis Latour’s own cooperage.

In ancient french ‘La Garenne’ means a wood surrounded walls reserved for the lord of the manor, for the hunting of small game in particular rabbit (the origin of the expression ‘lapin de garenne’).