1929 Latour
Rosalie Checca
These half bottles were ordered within a few days of each other at The Kitchen at the Grand Lisboa hotel & casino. The restaurants at the Grand Lisboa, including Robuchon Au Dome, share a 16k+ wine bottle list with 120+ pages of half bottles, and I have high confidence in their authenticity and storage.
After enjoying the 1929 Latour, I was eager to compare it to the recent 2009 vintage. 2009 was a great Bordeaux vintage, and the 2009 Latour received 99/100 and 100/100 ratings from Wine Spectator and Robert Parker. Of course, the 2009 Latour had much tighter tannins than the 1929, but was still very drinkable now. I was amazed by how consistent the Chateau Latour wine was between 1929 and 2009. If I ignored the differences in tannin maturity, there was such a narrow difference between the fruit and vineyard flavors between the 1929 and 2009 Latour. Wow!
Fans of the TV series Northern Exposure who have good memories may recall a 1993 episode titled "The Big Feast," in which a character played by Adam Arkin helps to reconstruct a bottle of Chteau Latour 1929 from a fictional Wine Spectator tasting note.
Maurice, the town's rich guy, is throwing an elaborate party. The '29 Latour is to be the centerpiece wine. But Shelley, the free-spirited young wife of the town's barkeep, has broken the bottle. Her friend Eve (Adam's wife, of course) thinks she and Adam can doctor up a young wine and no one will know the difference.
Eve reads the tasting note from a copy of Wine Spectator propped at the kitchen table. He adds peat moss "to lend sediment and a nice earthy undertone." Vanilla and pepper are mentioned, so in they go through the funnel at the top of the bottle.
I had to Google that episode because it came to mind when I read last week that a laboratory in Napa Valley thinks it can actually do what that episode pretended to do: imitate a great wine without having to actually grow the grapes in the right place, ferment it into wine, mature it and age it.
Ava, the new biotech wine venture, faces its biggest challenge "not just in identifying the 200 or so molecular compounds that comprise a given wine, but also in determining the ratios in which they exist together," we reported. "After that, it's simply a matter of replicating each molecular compound in the lab."
Somewhere a dozen natural wine enthusiasts just fainted. Perhaps Arkin's agent is already lining him up to play the leading scientist. Or maybe a future Captain Picard could forgo "tea, Earl Grey, hot" for a perfect decanter of Latour '29.
The bottom line for me is that wine is not merely an assemblage of ingredients or 200 molecular compounds. It's a product of fermentation, where every change in temperature, exposure to oxygen and movement in the cellar can change delicate nuances. In the vineyard, we know, the slightest difference in elevation or incline, proximity to trees or presence of insects can bring minute changes in the finished wine.
This fabulous selection from a West Coast Collector and aficionado, whose passion for wine was born during a trip to France many years ago, begins with over thirty bottles and fifteen lots from iconic DRC. Highlights include two bottles of 1985 Grands Echezeaux, four vintages of Richebourg and two bottles of the mythical 1985 Romane Conti. In addition, rarely does one ever see an astonishing eight vintages of La Tche, including multiple bottles from the legendary 1985, 1990, 1993 and 1996 vintages. An impressive selection of Bordeaux follows with all of the First Growths present including full cases of 1990 Lafite and Margaux, 2000 Haut Brion, Mouton Rothschild and Latour (both bottles and magnums!) amongst many others. Finally, not to be overshadowed are individual bottles of the immortal 1929 Y'quem.
Almost all of these wines were bought on release and stored meticulously by the original owner in a private, purpose-built temperature controlled cellar. The wines, part of a much larger collection, were inspected on site and shipped to Sotheby's warehouse via temperature-controlled truck.
From the moment this gentleman, a long-time Sotheby's client in New York City, began amassing a cellar, provenance and pristine conditions have been the hallmark of the collection. The vast majority of this collection was purchased on release, with the balance sourced from the most reputable of retailers and auction houses. These impeccably sourced wines were removed from temperature-controlled professional storage and purpose-built home cellars for transfer to Sotheby's warehouse.
We begin in Bordeaux, with a focus on the outstanding 2000 and 2005 vintages. Cos d'Estournel, Grand Puy Lacoste, Loville Las Cases and Lynch Bages all appear in original wood, alongside a full case of Mouton Rothschild 1998. Continuing on to Burgundy, twelve bottles each of La Tche 1998 and 1995 are followed by a truly impressive parade of large formats: La Romane Liger-Belair 2003 in jeroboam, and magnums of Clos de la Roche Dujac 1993, Musigny J.-F. Mugnier 1999 and Bonnes Mares G. Roumier 2005. An incredibly rare full dozen bottles of Musigny Joseph Drouhin 1996 in original carton, plus Krug Clos d'Ambonnay 1996 and Pol Roger Cuve Winston Churchill 1988 in jeroboam, rounds out this spectacular offering of blue chip rarities.
Representing decades of passionate study, collecting and enjoyment by a gentleman connoisseur, this selection is beautifully well-rounded. It reads like the fantasy wine list one might hope to see at a last meal. Spanning much of the 20th century, the vintages are overwhelmingly ideal for drinking soon, though opportunities to store away young first growths, DRC and cult California wines for aging do exist. Should the occasion call for Burgundy, we begin with a dazzling selection of DRC Montrachet, La Tche and Richebourg, including the 1929, 1971, 1978, 1990 and 1999 vintages. Verticals of Musigny Comte Georges de Vog and Clos de la Roche Ponsot feature magnums from multiple vintages, and Grand Cru bottlings of mature Camille Giroud round out the highlighted producers from the Cte d'Or. Grands Echzeaux Maison Leroy 1966, Clos de Tart 1999 and 2005 and Montrachet Ramonet 1999 make guest appearances as well.
Moving on to Bordeaux, our consignor amassed large collections of Haut Brion, La Mission Haut Brion, Lafite, Cheval Blanc, Latour, Margaux and Mouton Rothschild, allowing for many vintage comparisons across these great Chteaux. Of particular note are Haut Brion 1989, La Mission Haut Brion 1961, Latour 1959 and Mouton Rothschild 2000 in bottle and magnum. California cults are strongly represented, including Screaming Eagle 2009 through 2013 (all vintages included), all five Colgin wines from various years, Dana Estates's Hershey, Lotus and Helms vineyards and a pristine bottle of the original California cult, 1974 Heitz Cellar Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.
The collector was wise to buy from many legendary and historic single-owner wine auctions, and bottles from the Private Cellar of Doris Duke deserve special mention here. Included from that collection are 1929 La Mission Haut Brion, 1929 Latour, 1929 Charmes Chambertin Rolland Boyer, 1929 Richebourg Domaine de la Romane Conti and 1929 Vosne Romane Premier Cru Les Gaudichots Domaine de la Romane Conti. Elsewhere, wines were purchased from top retailers and reputable auction houses and removed for sale from a combination of purpose-built, climate controlled home cellars and professional storage.
Donald was born June 16, 1929 in LaTour, MO, a son of Roy Lee and Arthenia Izola (Luney) Smith. He was a 1947 graduate of Leeton, Missouri High School and attended three years of college. He served in the U.S. Army and was in the National Guard at the old Nike Base in Pleasant Hill, Missouri. He was married as soon as he joined the Army in 1948. He married Mary Belle Rickard of Luray, Virginia. They had two daughters, Juanita Ann in 1950 and Donna Marie in 1951. Mary preceded him in death in 1956. Donald married Dorothy Frances Stephens on November 26, 1965 in Harrisonville. They had lived in Pleasant Hill, MO for eight years before moving to Harrisonville in 1973.
Joan was born July 16, 1929 on the Kenagy homestead near Gunn City, Missouri, the daughter of Aubrey Sylvester Kenagy and Ina Mae (Nichols) Kenagy. She graduated from Latour High School and subsequently received her teaching certificate from the Warrensburg Teachers College. She was united in marriage to Raymond Garnett Stout on September 7, 1951 in Gunn City. The couple made their home near Holden. Joan taught at the following country schools: Star, No. 9, Index, Marshall and Stout prior to teaching at Latour Schools. She was an active member of Gunn City Christian Church, where she taught Sunday School for many years. She was a 4-H Leader in years past. Joan enjoyed farm life, feeding her pet donkeys in later years. She also enjoyed visiting with friends and family on the phone and doing word search puzzles to occupy her time.
Survivors include her daughter: Renae Falke (Sam) of Carrollton, MO; four grandsons: Anthony McMullin (Tiffany) of Carrollton, MO; Jared McMullin (KC) of Bogard, MO; Seth McMullin of Carrollton, MO and Nathan McMullin of Holden, MO; and five great grandchildren: Kylie, Griffin, Clayton, Clara Jo and Carlee. She was preceded in death by her husband, Raymond and a son-in-law, Keith McMullin.
Funeral Services will be 2:00 p.m. Saturday, January 20th at Williams Funeral Chapel in Holden with Rev. Steve Winnie of Gunn City Christian Church officiating. Interment will follow at the Holden Cemetery.
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