2004

Rating: 8/10 - Keep.

The old favourites from Pauillac and St Julien have done very well.

They are classic in style, have a good balance of acidity, tannins and the fruit has good aging potential. Fruit was very obvious on the nose with the best wines, but dry tannins dominated the palate, however top wines had great length.

The crop was very generous and so there is plenty of wine about which, hopefully, will keep prices at a sensible level. Interestingly, this is not a year where one particular appellation or variety has come out on top; this year is all about the producer.