Château Latour: The 20th Century
Despite the replanting at Château Latour it is said that the quality of the wine in the bottle during the early years of the 20th century was maintained, although I have not been fortunate enough – and I am sure I never will be – to taste the wines and judge for myself. In the meantime the post-phylloxera diseases of mildew and oidium wrought havoc in the vineyard, and continued to do so until the necessary cures were discovered. The 1915 vintage was said to be particularly difficult, the mildew so bad that there was no wine produced that year. Even so there was continued investment here at Château Latour, with a new barrel cellar being constructed in 1926.
Otherwise life at Château Latour during the first half of the 20th century was difficult, as it was elsewhere in Bordeaux, a region which was hard hit by the depression of the 1920s and the two World Wars. Château Latour was perhaps not quite as affected as Château Lafite-Rothschild and Château Mouton-Rothschild, but nobody had it easy during these tragic times. After the end of hostilities, things were kept ticking over until 1962, which was when a change in ownership was first threatened.
