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This one of my favorite 2004 Bordeaux to drink at the moment. It shows lovely sweet tobacco, flowers and currants on the nose and palate. It’s full-to-medium-bodied, with silky, firm tannins and a spicy, fresh finish. So delicious now.James Suckling | 93 JSTasted at the château, the 2004 Montrose is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot picked between 24 September and 15 October. It has a foursquare but precise bouquet that unfolds in the glass to offer brambly red berry fruit, tar, undergrowth and cedar aromas. There is a touch of mint that emerges with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with tannins that gently grip. It is more savory than other vintages: hints of bacon fat and bell pepper towards the harmonious finish that lingers nicely in the mouth. Probably earlier drinking that other vintages, yet this Montrose has personality and will give drinking pleasure for 15-20 years. Tasted September 2016.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 92 RP-NMDark-colored, with beautiful spice, blackberry and licorice aromas. Full-bodied, round and velvety, with wonderful balance and a long, long finish. This is a Montrose that caresses your palate. Best after 2011. 26,665 cases made.Wine Spectator | 92 WSDeep, bright ruby-red. Sexy, ripe aromas of currant, black plum, raspberry, smoked meat, mocha, jasmine, black olive and earth. Smooth in texture but vinous and bright, with a penetrating character to the flavors of plum, currant, mocha and tobacco. Finishes bright and fresh, with dusty, tactile tannins and a classic St. Estephe medicinal note. This tightened up with aeration.Vinous Media | 91 VM This is a modern take on Montrose, which for years had been one of the stodgiest of the great Médocs. The wine has the intensity this vineyard often gives, black as indigo ink and concentrated, but without excess weight. Instead of stolid, the tannins feel luscious and sweet, riper and softer than the classical profile of Montrose. The complexity and foresty freshness is there to develop over the course of a decade or more.Diageo Château & Estate Wines, NYWine & Spirits | 91 W&SFine concentration of red and black fruits on the nose – a very good natural intensity and depth. Moderate tannins give some structure, leading to a medium to intense finish. A classic Médoc. Drinking Window 2014 - 2022Decanter | 90 DEC

Deep red. Aromas of blueberry, plum, leather, tobacco and mocha. Sweet, plummy and pliant, with a creamy, fine-grained texture for the vintage. Very plush wine, richer than the 2006 and at least as long. Finishes with big but ripe tannins.Vinous Media | 91 VMLatour’s second wine is, as so often, on a level with many classed growths. In 2004, it is also a very faithful reflection of the vintage: fresh, lively and vital, with acidity and vibrant blackberry fruits very much up front. If not big, it is deliciously fresh and will develop well over five years.Wine Enthusiast | 91 WEThe estate’s second wine continues to go from strength to strength. The 2004 Forts de Latour (includes 75% Cabernet Sauvignon) reveals a deep ruby/purple hue, classic evolved cedary, lead pencil, and cassis characteristics, medium body, beautiful sweetness of fruit, and a more forward, evolved character than its big sibling. Enjoy it over the next 15+ years. Also tasted: 2004 Pauillac (87; $38.00)Robert Parker | 90 RPLots of mineral, currant and berries on the nose. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a long finish. A bit austere, but there’s enough stuffing to back it up. Best after 2010.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Like Clos du Marquis, the nose is very backward and broody, though eventually aromas of blackberry leaf and citrus fruits emerge. Then becoming more minerally. Full-bodied, very tannic and robust with precocious ripe black fruits. Quite linear, very tight. Huge grip. It just lacks some joie-de-vivre, some brightness of fruit. As always, strangely unlovable, but undoubtedly impressive.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94-96 RP-NMIntense aromas of currant, blackberry and light vanilla. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a long, caressing finish. Layered, with everything in the right proportion for the vintage. Excellent. Reminds me of the 1996. Best after 2012. 20,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSA cooler year than 2003 or 2005, and the precision is clear, with layers of tight black fruits, cedar and fresh mint confidently on display. It’s pretty austere right now, but its weight and texture is far more impressive than its youth. In vintages like this, it’s clear that the terroir always takes precedence here. There is 90% new oak here, and yet you barely get a whisper of it besides the soft, cold ash smoke on the finish. Drinking Window 2020 - 2040Decanter | 95 DECThis is so beautiful now with ceps, mushrooms, bark and blackberries, as well as some flowers and black olives. It’s full-bodied, round and soft. Lovely now. Drink and enjoy now, or hold.James Suckling | 95 JSThis “super second” lives up to its billing. It is rich and concentrated with dark tannins that lie over the ripe, jammy fruit and black, rich chocolate flavors. Acidity and wood are there, but only just hints after the richness of the fruit. A real, magnificent aging wine.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe 2004 Léoville–Las Cases has the tough job of following the 2005. It offers black fruit mixed with sous-bois, smoke and sage aromas, now moving into its secondary stage but without the intensity of great vintages like 2005 or 2010. The palate is well balanced, with off-dry tannin. Classic in style, fresh and poised, leading to a lovely, quite sensual finish that leaves you wishing for another sip. Very fine.Vinous Media | 93 VMShowing beautifully, with a classic elegance and beautiful complexity, the 2004 Saint-Julien reveals a healthy ruby hue as well as textbook currants, lead pencil shavings, dried tobacco, and dried flower-like aromas and flavors. It shows the more streamlined, elegant style of the vintage yet has plenty of sweet fruit, beautiful overall balance, and a great finish. It’s drinking at point today yet should continue evolving and drinking nicely for 15-20 years or so.Jeb Dunnuck | 93 JD

As so often, La Mission is rich, voluptuous, opulent and always a wine that seduces when it is young. But watch for those firm tannins, pure black plum and chocolate flavors, and wait for the dense texture to open up over the next 10 years—and more.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEThe 2004 La Mission Haut-Brion is the first vintage in a while that transcends the growing season. It shows a deep garnet core with faint bricking at the rim. The very pleasant tertiary nose displays touches of pitted black olives and bell peppers; you can immediately tell that it does not derive from a warm growing season. The medium-bodied palate delivers fine-grained tannins, well-judged acidity and black fruit tinged with a light marine/seaweed influence toward the no-frills finish. It does its job, does it well, then leaves. This is drinking well now, and though I cannot foresee any advantages in long-term cellaring, it should hold up well for the next 12–15 years. Tasted at a private dinner in Bordeaux.Vinous Media | 93 VMAromas of fruit and spices, with black pepper and cumin and undertones of forest floor. Full-bodied, with a solid core of fruit, a silky texture and a medium-to-long finish. Best after 2011. 7,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WSWhile La Mission Haut-Brion’s 2004 is not one of this estate’s top successes, it is an outstanding wine, no doubt because of this extraordinary terroir. Deep ruby/purple with notes of lead pencil shavings intermixed with black cherries, cassis, and a hint of scorched earth, medium body, sweet tannin, and a good, but uninspiring finish, this attractive, mid-weight La Mission should age nicely for 15 or more years.Robert Parker | 90 RP