2024 Bordeaux Vintage

The 2024 growing season was defined from the outset by extraordinary rainfall. The winter preceding the vintage was the wettest since 2000, with nearly 900mm recorded at the Pessac weather station between October 2023 and March 2024, waterlogging soils and hampering routine vineyard work. A warm, sunny start to April triggered an early budbreak, but morning frosts on April 19 to 23 caused localized losses, particularly in frost-prone areas such as Sauternes and Barsac. May brought almost twice its 30-year average rainfall, creating ideal conditions for downy mildew and causing uneven flowering with significant coulure and millerandage. A welcome dry period from mid-July to the last week of August offered a genuine reprieve. Heavy rains returned from around September 20, however, driving severe botrytis outbreaks that forced producers into agonizing harvest timing decisions throughout October.

• Winter 2023 to 2024 was the wettest since 2000, with nearly 900mm of rain recorded at Pessac, saturating soils before a single bud had broken
• April frosts on April 19 to 23 caused localized losses in susceptible areas including Sauternes and Barsac
• May rainfall was roughly double the 30-year average at around 126mm versus 71mm, triggering mildew outbreaks and poor fruit set from coulure and millerandage
• A dry window from mid-July to the last week of August rescued quality; serious botrytis then arrived with rains returning around September 20

Quality in 2024 was highly heterogeneous, determined far more by drainage, mildew management, and harvest timing than by any simple Left Bank versus Right Bank divide. Yields from the four key Haut-Médoc appellations of Pauillac, Saint-Julien, Saint-Estèphe, and Margaux, plus Pomerol on the Right Bank, all came in between 20 and 30-plus percent below their 20-year averages. Pauillac's average yield fell below 30 hl/ha for the first time since 2013. The drier northern Médoc, particularly Saint-Estèphe, received less rainfall between August and early September than appellations further south, with Montrose reporting that their area received just 50mm in that critical window versus 80mm in Margaux and 120mm in Pessac-Léognan. Merlot, more susceptible to mildew and coulure than the Cabernets, bore the brunt of losses across the region, and most Médoc producers ended up with significantly less Merlot in their 2024 blends than normal. Dry white wine yields were the notable exception to the low-yield story, with Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon delivering relatively consistent volumes and impressive quality.

• Pauillac average yield dropped below 30 hl/ha, a level not seen since 2013, reflecting mildew, coulure, and botrytis losses
• Saint-Estèphe received less rain in the August to September window than southern appellations, giving estates such as Montrose a relative advantage at harvest
• Merlot was worst affected by coulure and mildew across both banks; most Médoc producers significantly reduced Merlot proportions in their final blends
• Dry white wines were the vintage's consistent bright spot, with yields holding up and critics rating Pessac-Léognan whites among the finest wines of the year

En primeur tastings conducted in April 2025, with critics tasting over 700 barrel samples, revealed a sharp hierarchy of quality directly correlated with terroir drainage, ruthless sorting, and the courage to hold out for ripeness despite botrytis risk. James Suckling identified Chateau Latour and Pomerol's Chateau Lafleur as the unicorns of the vintage. Chateau Cheval Blanc was widely cited as one of the stars of the year, its team accepting a 34 percent reduction of their 39 hl/ha yield through sorting to produce a wine described by critics as fragrant, suave, and complete. Critics Neal Martin and Antonio Galloni awarded their highest scores to the dry whites, with La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Haut-Brion Blanc, Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, and Domaine de Chevalier Blanc among the year's most acclaimed wines. Multiple top estates including Lafite Rothschild, Mouton Rothschild, Angelus, Montrose, and Smith Haut Lafitte released their 2024 en primeur at significant discounts of 22 to 36 percent below 2023 release prices.

• Chateau Latour and Chateau Lafleur were identified by James Suckling as the vintage's unicorns, excelling above the general quality level
• Chateau Cheval Blanc accepted a 34 percent yield reduction through sorting at 39 hl/ha, earning top scores from multiple critics including 95 to 97 points from The Wine Independent
• Dry whites were the critical consensus stars: Haut-Brion Blanc, Pavillon Blanc du Chateau Margaux, La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, and Domaine de Chevalier Blanc drew the highest praise
• Major estates released 2024 en primeur at steep discounts, with Lafite Rothschild down 29 percent, Mouton Rothschild down 22 percent, and Figeac down 36 percent versus 2023

Harvest timing in 2024 was among the most complex decisions producers have faced in living memory. Merlot on the Right Bank began arriving from around September 16 to 20, with some Pomerol estates finishing Cabernet by early October. Left Bank Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc varied widely, with some properties starting in late September while others held on until after October 5, waiting for ripeness while botrytis ravaged sections of their vineyards. Chateau Latour's Cabernet Sauvignon was harvested on October 4, 2024. The tension between waiting for ripeness and losing fruit to rot was the defining challenge of the vintage. Draconian sorting was universal among quality-focused estates; Chateau La Conseillante reported removing over 20 percent of the harvest, resulting in a final yield of around 22 hl/ha. Numerous estates reported needing to chaptalize some of their Cabernet lots, and a light-touch extraction approach was widely adopted to protect the wines' natural freshness.

• Pomerol Merlot harvest kicked off from around September 16 to 20; Cabernet finished by early October at most estates
• Left Bank Cabernet Sauvignon harvest varied enormously, with some estates starting late September and others not beginning until after October 5
• Sorting was decisive for quality: Chateau La Conseillante removed over 20 percent of its crop, yielding around 22 hl/ha for the grand vin
• Numerous producers chaptalized Cabernet Sauvignon lots and adopted infusion-style, low-temperature macerations to preserve freshness and avoid harsh extraction

The technical profile of the 2024 Bordeaux reds reflects the cool, wet season clearly. Most top wines came in at 13 to 13.5 percent alcohol with pH levels around 3.6 to 3.75, producing wines of vivid natural acidity that critics compared to the lighter, freshly structured clarets of earlier decades. Tannin ripeness was generally better achieved than flavor ripeness, an unusual characteristic of the vintage noted by Chateau Margaux's managing director Philippe Bascaules, who observed that tannins were tracking ahead of flavor development throughout the season. The best wines are medium-bodied with fine tannins and a crunchy, bright character. They lack the density and concentration of recent warm vintages such as 2022, but deliver genuine fruit purity and aromatic charm. The dry whites, harvested mainly in late August and early September, showed less potential alcohol and higher acidity than average, yet achieved impressive aromatic intensity.

• Alcohol levels of 13 to 13.5 percent ABV and pH around 3.6 to 3.75 are the norm for the top reds, reflecting the cool season and delivering vivid acidity
• Tannin ripeness outpaced flavor ripeness across many sites, an unusual characteristic of the vintage linked to the cool, wet growing conditions
• The best reds are medium-bodied with fine tannins and a crunchy, bright character reminiscent of lighter Bordeaux styles from previous decades
• Dry whites were harvested in late August to early September with lower potential alcohol and higher acidity than average, achieving impressive aromatic intensity and aging potential

The guiding principle for navigating 2024 Bordeaux is straightforward: buy the wine, not the vintage. The best examples from disciplined producers on well-drained terroirs deliver fragrant, vivid, classically-styled wines of genuine charm and early accessibility, while lesser examples from difficult sites show dilution and vegetal notes. The vintage draws comparisons to 2008 and 2014 in its overall profile, but the most skilled producers have outperformed those reference points at the top level. The 2024 en primeur campaign was notable for the scale of price reductions, with most leading chateaux releasing at their lowest levels in years in order to reconnect with a cautious global market. For collectors, the vintage offers an opportunity to acquire wines from prestigious addresses at attractive prices, provided selections are focused on estates with the best drainage, the deepest commitment to selection, and the strongest track record in difficult years.

• The critical consensus: buy the producer and the terroir, not the vintage; quality variation within the same appellation tier is wider than usual
• Vintage comparators include 2008 and 2014 in overall character, medium-bodied and fresh, distinct from the power of 2022 or the volume of 2023
• En primeur prices fell sharply, with major estates releasing at 22 to 36 percent below 2023 levels, making 2024 the cheapest access point for many first and second growths in years
• Top reds will offer pleasure relatively soon after bottling in 2027, with the best sites capable of continued development through the 2030s and beyond