2019 Louis Latour Cuvee Heritiers Latour Chambertin Grand Cru 750 ml

In Burgundy, there is a rigid hierarchy of vines, from village all the way up to Grand Cru. But beyond these designations, there exist finer distinctions that you don’t necessarily see on the label. And Louis Latour’s Cuvée Heritiers Chambertin Grand Cru is a bottle whose label hints at—but doesn’t completely reveal—exactly how special the wine really is. 

If the prestigious village of Gevrey-Chambertin has a heart, it’s the Grand Cru of Chambertin, which is widely known as one of the most sacred places on Earth for Pinot Noir. In the late 1800s, the Latour family acquired a strip of vines—just 0.81 hectares, or two acres—that extend from the bottom to the top of the hillside Grand Cru.

Passed down from generation to generation for nearly a century and a half now, the family saw fit to name the wine they make from these vines “Cuvée Hérétiers”—roughly translated, “the heirs' blend.” It’s their only bottling from the hallowed Chambertin Grand Cru. Grown in the spectacular 2019 vintage, aged for a year in 100% new French oak, this bottle inspired a rapturous 99-point review from James Suckling. His words: “This is what makes Burgundy so special.” 

This is a great wine—an homage to a special parcel in a hallowed vineyard from one of the most beloved families in the region. Now five years after harvest, it’s drinking beautifully, but will certainly thrive in the cellar for a decade plus.