n 4 50 24 e 47.024127 n 4.840078 e 47.024127 ; 4.840078 louis latour ch teau corton grancey industry wine founded 1797 headquarters beaune & aloxe corton france key people louis fabrice latour products ch teau corton grancey chambertin cuv e h ritiers latour corton clos de la vigne au saint roman e saint vivant les quatre journaux subsidiaries henry fessy & simmonet febvre website www.louislatour.com maison louis latour is an important n gociant l veur of red and white wines in burgundy france . currently run by the seventh louis latour louis fabrice latour the company has remained family run since its foundation in 1797 and has built a reputation for tradition and innovation . this domaine has the largest grand cru property in the cote d or with a total of 28.63 hectares 71.58 acres . 1 in 1997 louis latour was admitted into the exclusive club of the h nokiens . 2 this club only admits companies that remain family owned have a history of 200 years experience and still bears the name of the founder . contents 1 history 2 vineyards 3 the ard che and the var 4 the grand crus of domaine louis latour 5 references 6 external links history edit cuverie corton grancey louis latour aloxe corton maison louis latour has over two centuries of burgundian history . the latour family themselves have been wine growers since the 17th century slowly building up a unique domaine of 50 hectares 125 acres . latour has 33 hectares of vineyards in aloxe corton where ch teau corton grancey is based . the beautiful winery corton grancey was built in 1834 and was the first purpose built winery in france . it is a prime example of great ingenuity and its five levels mean that cuvage can be carried out by gravity . its cellars embedded in the rock of corton perri res provide perfect ageing conditions . 3 colline des cortons aloxe corton vineyards edit the majority of louis latour s domaine vineyards are in aloxe corton the original home of the family . here latour owns 10.5 hectares 25 acres of corton charlemagne grand cru one of the most famous white wines of burgundy . they also own parts of corton clos de la vigne au saint grand cru corton bressandes grand cru corton les chaumes grand cru corton les pougets grand cru corton les perri res grand cru corton clos du roi grand cru corton les gr ves grand cru . they also own parts of the premiers crus les chaillots les founi res and les gu rets . furthermore latour owns parts of the vineyards of chambertin roman e saint vivant and chevalier montrachet les demoiselles . 4 cuverie corton grancey louis latour chariots de cuivre wines are made based on climate and terroir every year and latour is very careful with the way in which they handle the winemaking . 5 louis latour strives to embed the conditions of the terroir into their wine while respecting nature and tradition which are the quintessence of burgundy wine . harvesting is usually carried out in mid september . the key consideration when deciding the time of harvest time is the ripeness and condition of the grapes . at maison louis latour the winemakers believe that 80 % of the finished wine s quality is a result of work done in the vineyards . all of the red grapes are picked manually and harvested as late as possible . 6 the red wines of domaine louis latour are still vinified and aged at the historical winery corton grancey . maison louis latour respects burgundian traditions for the vinification of its red wines from the harvest to the final product . only the finest grapes are selected and placed into traditional french oak vats for a short period of fermentation . once fermentation is complete the wine is drained from the vats . this is called free run wine . all grape skins and pips are then removed manually and pressed gently by top of the range pneumatic pressing machines . the press wine is blended with the free run wine and spends approximately 12 months in barrel . it undergoes three rackings to clear it of any deposit that may have collected . after bottling the wine is allowed to settle for a further few months before distribution . 7 white wine vinification differs from the reds in that the grapes from the harvest go directly into the press . the pressed grape juice called must then undergoes a rapid fermentation in stainless steel tanks . the wine is transferred into french oak barrels where it continues to age for a period of approximately 12 months . the wine undergoes rackings before the final blending . 8 the ard che and the var edit domaine de valmoissine var the ard che in 1979 louis latour chose the valley of the ard che river with its clay and limestone based soils as the ideal location to produce top quality chardonnay wines . here louis latour produces chardonnay d ard che as well as the grand ard che which is treated as if it were grown in one of the grand cru vineyards of the c te d or . only the ripest grapes are used and fermentation and aging take place in oak barrels from the louis latour cooperage . furthermore after the success with these wines maison louis latour became interested in planting the viognier grape variety on ard che soils and in the original blend that could be made with chardonnay . the duet wine is unique because the two different grapes are fermented together . in addition latour also produces a wine made on purely viognier which is produced from hand picked grapes carefully vinified in latour s ard che winery on the outskirts of the village of alba la romaine . 9 the var domaine de valmoissine louis latour decided to produce a pinot noir in the var region with the aim of producing an affordable top quality pinot noir . the coteaux de verdon is in the far south east of france based around the town of aups . aups owes its fame to being the truffle hunting capital of provence . domaine de valmoissine is located on the site of the ancient monastery and university of valmoissine at 500 metres above sea level . this guarantees sunshine during the summer months while remaining cool at night and limits the possibility of spring frosts . the grapes are fermented in open stainless steel vats for a short period of 4 5 days . 10 the grand crus of domaine louis latour edit corton charlemagne corton charlemagne is a grand cru from the hill of corton in the c te de beaune . it is one of the flagship wines of maison louis latour . this vineyard is close to the famous clos charlemagne which was the property of the emperor charlemagne until 775 . the word corton is a contraction of curtis othonis which means domain of othon an emperor descended from charlemagne . 11 paradoxically it was the gravest crisis that the burgundian vineyard ever knew that caused the birth of this wine . the limestone rich soil at the top of the hillside had been ignored before louis latour the 7th generation of latour decided to plant chardonnay instead of the aligot that had been killed by the phylloxera a deadly insect . as homage his signature still graces the corton charlemagne label today . the latour family owns 11 hectares of this gem ; hence they are the biggest owner in the appellation . situated at the summit of the hill of corton where one can also find the winery of louis latour the vineyards reach a perfect maturity thanks to their southern exposure . they are overseen by the cross of charlemagne a monument given by the hospices de beaune in 1943 to louis no l latour . grands crus louis latour ch teau corton grancey the hill of corton has been known for more than a millennium for the quality of its terroirs and perfect orientation . to honour the maison s rich history the flagship ch teau corton grancey grand cru is made which is entirely unique to louis latour and is only produced in the best vintages . it is a blend of four areas of domaine latour corton grand cru les bressandes les perri res les gr ves and clos du roi . after aging individually only the best barrels are assembled to create the ch teau corton grancey . the word corton is a contraction of curtis othonis which means domain of othon an emperor descended from charlemagne . 12 grancey was the name of the last owners of the chateau situated on the road of corton before the latour family bought it in 1891 . chambertin grand cru cuv e h ritiers latour chambertin is a grand cru from the c te de nuits . this vineyard has been cultivated since the 7th century by the monks of b ze abbey . the name chambertin comes from a peasant called bertin berht in means son of berht who planted the vines in one of his fields next to the clos de b ze . the name field of bertin champ de bertin was adopted for the parcel and was kept even after the death of the peasant . 13 chambertin was the favourite wine of napoleon 1st even on the battlefield . alexander dumas also mentions it in his famous book the three muskateers nothing makes the world looks rosier than to contemplate it through a glass of chambertin . . 14 at the end of the 19th century the latour family acquired 0.81 hectares in the chambertin grand cru appellation forming a beautiful parcel extending from the top to the bottom of the hillside closer to that of latrici res chambertin rather than clos de b ze . the terroir of chambertin is legendary for its exceptional richness due to a geological phenomenon called alluvial fan . this deeply complex terroir is characterized by brown calcareous soils . it breeds a powerful and complex wine with a long ageing potential combining the robustness of pinot noir and the taste of the terroir . roman e saint vivant grand cru les quatre journaux roman e saint vivant is a grand cru from the c te de nuits . this appellation carries the name of the priory of saint vivant the monks were the first to cultivate the vineyards around vosne roman e. the land has been known for centuries for its exceptional characteristics . 15 the latour family has been proprietors of a part of roman e saint vivant since december 1898 . fabled vines acquired from the heirs of the marey monge and larey families les quatre journaux is a magnificent plot of land situated at the south west of roman e saint vivant a few meters from the roman e conti vineyard . today maison louis latour owns 0.8 hectares of roman e saint vivant . it offers a marvelously aromatic wine with a velvety texture which culminates in a persistent and powerful finish in the mouth . 16 chevalier montrachet grand cru les demoiselles chevalier montrachet is a grand cru in the c te de beaune . the name montrachet is a derivation of the names mont rachaz 1252 mont rachat 1380 the montrachat 1473 . this evolution highlights why we say mont rachet and not mon tra chet . 17 in old french la r che means bald etymologically speaking montrachet therefore means bald mountain 18 because of its lack of vegetation . in the middle ages the lord of puligny passed down a vineyard to his eldest son the chevalier knight who left france to fight in the crusades hence the name of the appellation