Vintage Weather
2004 across the wine world
Every region on record for 2004, read the same way: temperature, rain, harvest timing, and the events that shaped the season.
A warm year with a cool, dry harvest that kept acidity fresh.
Harvested autumn 2004
A record-breaking harvest paired with a heatwave and Hunter Valley rain damage.
Harvested autumn 2004
Bordeaux's largest-ever crop was saved from a cold August by a warm September.
Hail and mildew hurt reds, which developed a controversial green character; whites shone.
A cool August rescued by an Indian summer built rare elegance and purity.
Cool August preserved freshness before a dry Indian-summer harvest.
A cool, disappointing summer produced crisp, precise, age-worthy dry Rieslings.
A return to balance after 2003's heat built an elegant, classic year.
A balanced, generous season made elegant, perfumed, age-worthy wines.
Severe spring drought was followed by the wettest August in 104 years.
A slow, even ripening season with cool nights built precise, age-worthy wines.
An early spring and hot dry September gave a small, concentrated crop.
Rain delayed a short crop, and the wait gave crisp, bright, classic wines.
An early, warm season and August heat spike gave deeply concentrated reds.
A January freeze hit Walla Walla hardest, then a hot season gave dense fruit.