2004 Vintage Guide | Wine Reviews

Read our guide to 2004 vintage wines! Opinion and complete details by our cellar master. We detail the success of this wine year for every major French region.

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• THE 2004 BORDEAUX VINTAGE

After an atypical 2003 vintage, with extraordinary weather and temperatures, the 2004 vintage will be a more "classic" one in the Bordeaux region. The season is set to get off to a normal start, with a winter that's up to the highest standards. A cold, very dry winter that will allow the vines to wake up on time. April was cool and wet, but in line with seasonal norms, followed by an identical month of May. Bud-break was on schedule, but flowering was a little behind schedule, but nothing too serious and irrecoverable. The months of September and October will see good temperatures and warm, sunny weather. All the parameters are therefore in place for rich, aromatic wines in the 2004 vintage. Winemakers should have no difficulty in producing attractive wines. They will, however, lack a little "character" by being very classic, but without offering bad juice. Winemakers who make good selection and vinification will succeed in producing tannic, fruity wines.

As far as dry white wines are concerned, these are quite successful. They are fresh and fruity, with good acidity. As for sweet white wines, botrytis did not play a major role in the 2004 vintage, and was only present to a limited extent. In Bordeaux, they were the least successful of the year.

For Bordeaux connoisseurs, we have a number of success stories for the 2004 vintage. First and foremost, Château Haut-Bailly 2004 in Pessac-Léognan. The terroir is ideal for Cabernet Sauvignon, producing a powerful, dense wine that still has great ageing potential. For those who love beautiful labels, we also have in the same appellation the Château Carmes Haut Brion 2004. For even more finesse and delicacy, we have the Château Beau-Sejour-Becot 2004in the Saint-Émilion appellation. Merlot adds velvetiness and roundness to a very complex wine.

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• THE 2004 VINTAGE IN BURGUNDY

The 2004 vintage will give winegrowers cold sweats. Hot on the heels of the 2003 vintage, which unsettled even the best winemakers, the 2004 vintage is set to bring its share of stress. Winter will pass quietly in Burgundy, as in most of France, with cool, dry weather. Spring, too, will be on the cards, with less capricious weather. The winegrowers were looking forward to a rather calm and straightforward year. Bud-break went well, as did flowering. Homogeneous and healthy, the vines developed well and the grapes began to turn red. Except that... Burgundy was to experience a record year in terms of storms in the region. No less than 8 storms hit the region in August. This will have a major impact on the ripeness and health of the grapes. To top it all off, hail fell on several appellations south of the Côtes de Nuits and on part of the Côte de Beaune. The vines were in bad shape, but made up for lost time thanks to a miraculous end to August and a miraculous month of September. Warm temperatures and a dry climate enabled the winegrowers to harvest the grapes in excellent conditions. The 2004 vintage was therefore a bit of a miracle, rewarding patient winegrowers who were able to harvest their grapes at the right stage of ripeness. As a general rule, the red wines are quite fruity, full-bodied and well-balanced. As for the whites, they are quite expressive and full-bodied. 

We are fortunate to still have a few bottles of Chevalier Montrachet "les demoiselles" 2004 by Louis Latour. A Grand Cru in the Puligny-Montrachet appellation, it produces a highly mineral, fat wine of great complexity.

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•  THE 2004 RHÔNE VALLEY VINTAGE

As in the rest of France, the 2004 vintage will be relatively classic. After a very hot summer in 2003, the region experienced heavy rainfall in the autumn, which replenished water reserves. In 2004, everything went according to plan, with no excesses. Only the mistral wind made it difficult for the vines to develop, but did not spoil everything. The end of the season was fine, with calm weather and a few showers that didn't do much harm. The harvest will be sunny and the vines will be in perfect health. The 2004 vintage will therefore be a very good one in the Rhône Valley, thanks to the water reserves of autumn 2003 and good weather during the summer. Surely the best of all regions for this 2004 vintage.

To discover this magnificent 2004 vintage, we've surely got the best of the Hermitage appellation, with wines from the domaine Jean Louis Chave 2004. Its Syrah is pure, complex and very mineral. Further south, the Châteauneuf du Pape Château de Vaudieu 2004 also does very well. More robust, with notes of black fruit, it will be perfect to complete a cellar and open with good game or red meat.

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• THE 2004 VINTAGE IN THE REST OF FRANCE

The 2004 vintage will be one of the decade's great standards. The weather was relatively mild, but there were a few vagaries here and there that complicated the winegrowers' task.

In ChampagneThis year will be very different from 2003. This time, there was no heatwave, but rather fine weather that produced healthy, rich grapes in good quantities. The rains of August and the fine weather of September helped.

In the Loire as in AlsaceIn the summer, the wines will be of average quality. The few rains failed to replenish the water reserves, and the grapes suffered from water stress in places, resulting in a slight lack of ripeness. As a result, the grapes returned to the winery healthy, but sometimes thin.

 

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