91 Latour ready for drinking?

Lynch Bages and Lafite were lean and mean in the late 1990s with little fruit, but a lot of structure to be resolved.

I have not had Latour but it is reputed to be quite excellent in this terrible year. And so given how structured the vintage is (ala 1984 in many ways), I think the more time you can give the wines to resolve that structure, the better.

This is a case where Lalou Leroy's famous comment that a lesser vintage needs more cellar time than a great vintage rings true.

That said, it has been 12 years now so I would suggest pulling the cork now or over the next 5-6 years. There is no rush, but I would not hold this for decades to come.

Take care,

Tom.

Broadbent (HIGHLY recommend his book, never have I actually found myself reading tasting notes for entertainment!) blames Bordeaux weather, characterizes

1991 as a year useful for drinking while waiting for others to mature. His entry for the Latour suggests now(was published in 2000) to 2015, and describes it as ready despite its grip, so in his much-more-qualified-than-mine opinion, it didn't sound like it's going to get much better. No hurry to finish it off, as long as you're storing it well, of course.