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Slow and steady: Champagne’s 2004 vintage 20 years on


2004 Champagne vintage‘2004’s quiet, serene beauty has never been more evident and deliciously poised, 20 years on,’ says Tom Hewson.

‘2004 is stunning,’ says Ruinart’s cellar master Frédéric Panaïotis. ‘It’s a lesson in being humble about our statements, nuanced in the way we talk about vintages.’

The ‘sleeper vintage’ is a recurring trope in wine discussions: a vintage that pulls the ultimate tortoise-and-hare trick, holding steady in the long-haul to overtake its showier neighbours despite long odds at the starting line.

It’s impossible, then, to understand the current interest in Champagne’s 2004 vintage 20 years on without seeing the hare: 2002.

Scroll down to see notes and scores for 23 Champagnes from the excellent 2004…


Source : https://www.decanter.com/premium/slow-and-steady-champagnes-2004-vintage-20-years-on-534621/

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