2004 Wine

Wine Enthusiast, 97 points: Following on from the great 2002 vintage of this wine, the 2004 is equally memorable. It is a magnificent wine, structured and beautifully balanced between the ripe white fruits and the tight texture that will allow it to...

Wine Enthusiast, 96 points: A blend of 66% Pinot Noir and 34% Chardonnay, this is opulent and full bodied, with toast and wood flavors. Rich and ripe, this beautiful wine is generous and still young, with just a touch of bitterness at the end.

Wine Spectator, 96 points: Intense aromas of blackberry blueberry and mineral with just the right amount of licorice and mineral. Full-bodied with silky tannins and a beautiful finish. Best after 2012. 2415 cases made. -JS

Wine Enthusiast, 94 points: For a 2004, this is big and rich, but that is to be expected from Guiraud. The fruit is magnificently ripe, with flavors of peach and tangerine syrup along with the core of botrytis and dark honey. The aftertaste is...

Wine Spectator, 93 points: A showy fleshy youngster offering supple currant anise and blackberry with hints of mocha. Intense and concentrated. The flavors are long and persistent on the finish with firm but ripe tannins that let the flavors push...

Wine Spectator, 93 points: A seductively complex and compelling style with rich fruit jazzy oak and a mix of currant black cherry blackberry and mocha-laced oak. Intense concentrated and complex with a long finish that keeps repeating the fruit and...

Wine Enthusiast, 94 points: The rich Pol Roger style is contrasted here with the natural crisp minerality of a Blanc de Blancs. That gives a great tension, with the tight texture just waiting to round out as the wine ages further. Because it is...

Wine Enthusiast, 94 points: One of the best vintages since the great 2002, this is a sophisticated, fruit- and yeast-driven wine. It has a delicate touch, with its white fruit flavors well integrated into the toasty and tangy texture. It will age...

Jancis Robinson's Purple Pages, 98 points: Dark purplish crimson. Actually this smells more obviously ripe and opulent than the 2005, perhaps because of its seductive and already complex undertow. Beautiful completeness. So beautifully balanced that it is already...

Antonio Galloni's Vinous, 98 points: The 2004 Vigna Serè is the perfect conclusion to a vintage that will go down as one of Dal Forno's most magical. Sweet, silky tannins support layers of super-refined, elegant fruit in this magical sweet red. Mocha...

Wine Enthusiast, 91 points: Reedy red-fruit aromas feature a note of green. This is tannic in feel, with a mix of red-leaning raspberry, currant and strawberry flavors. Tea, herb and other grassy notes make for a dry finish. Overall this is...

Wine & Spirits, 97 points: The energy in this wine recalls the 2002 Cristal (I wrote "energy" three times in my notes.) In 2004 it's explosive. The wine is saturated with flavor from floral notes of rose to pale limestone and equally pale fruit...

Neal Martin's Wine Journal, 95 points: Tasted at John Armit’s Lafleur seminar in London, the 2004 remains an outstanding wine of the vintage. It is just beginning to show signs of maturation on the rim, whilst the Cabernet Franc component is beginning to exert...

Burghound, 90 points: A gentle touch of wood serves as a background note for the somber and backward earthy black fruit aromas that lead to palate drenching flavors of solid depth and this really coats the palate with old vine sap. This is a...