Liquid Vintage: Kering for Latour
In this instalment of Liquid Vintage, we take a brief look at another story of wine as it weaves in and out of the fashion industry. This article's focus is no less than the iconic Chateau Latour.
As we alluded to previously, Chanel had its eyes on the iconic Chateau Latour but was outmaneuvered by Francois Pinault, the patriarch of the Kering Group and the man behind some of the fashion industry's best known labels such as Gucci, (Yves) Saint Laurent and Alexander McQueen (not to mention auction house Christie's).
Francois Pinault, together with his son, is not known for doing things the easy way. They have battled many opponents just as formidable as Chanel's Wertheimers and won, including the infamous battle against LVMH's Bernard Arnault for control of Gucci. The fight for Latour is the wine world's equivalent and just another notch in the stick for Pinault.
And Chateau Latour is certainly worth fighting over, even for two titans of the fashion industry: it enjoys one of the longest and most illustrious histories in the wine industry dating back to the 14th century. Montaigne wrote about it as early as the 16th century and so did Thomas Jefferson in the 17th century in his pre-presidential days as a foreign minister to France ahead of the French Revolution, and certainly long before it became one of only five Premiers Crus in the Medoc Classification of 1855.
But the Pinaults are not invincible either - following the global financial crisis in 2008, there were rumors that Latour was being offered for sale by Pinault's bankers, Lazard.
It never actually sold but time will tell... Chanel or some other fashion empire may yet get their chance at the helm of this great winery!