Château Durfort Vivens 2004

The 2004 vintage in Margaux

Vintage benchmark: 88/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: High yields and a dry September gave a classic, unexaggerated vintage, straightforward, now at its peak.

Overall reading of the year’s season across Margaux. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.

Tasting

The 2004 vintage has a deep purple color with violet nuances. The nose is intense and complex, with aromas of fresh berries, a touch of blackcurrant and blackberry, then spice and pepper. On the palate the tannins are of great quality, the wine has fine length, and a touch of vanilla gives this vintage a lot of character. The wine is powerful yet elegant, and convinces with its length, its richness of fruit and its freshness.

Blend of the 2004 vintage

Figures from the 2004 sheet

• 13 % vol.Alcohol
• 57 hl/haYield
• 120,000 bottlesProduction

Winemaking

The new facilities were designed to optimize plot selection and the management of vinification. Fermentation in small concrete vats for plot-by-plot tracking.

Ageing

In cask for 16 to 20 months, 45% of them new.

Terroir

Situated in the communes of Margaux, Cantenac and Soussans, the Durfort-Vivens vineyard puts down its roots on deep and particularly poor gravel rises. These gravels were deposited by the successive beds of the Garonne in the Quaternary era. This great terroir gives Cabernet Sauvignon an early and optimal ripeness, allowing it to express fully the finesse and silkiness of its tannins, the guarantee of the freshness and elegance characteristic of the great Margaux wines. At Château Durfort-Vivens, the constant search for a natural balance between the vine and its terroir is reflected in traditional cultivation practices. In 2012, 80% of the vineyard was farmed biodynamically and 20% under integrated production