We started our trio of high-end 2004’s with a medium intense, translucent ruby core and a clearly bricking rim. The slightly beyond medium intense nose has a distinctly green element to it –indeed more so than the neck glass poured out two hours earlier– and shows notes of pine resin & green herbs, but also red currant and with more time in the glass roasted meat and dried porcini. Much to my surprised this NSG primus inter pares is no more than medium bodied, which –paired with pronounced acidity and slightly grippy medium tannins– makes for a nervously styled drinking experience. Unlike the nose, the medium-plus intense black fruit flavours provide reasonable mid-palate balance and all but drown out the green flavours. There is some séve to the blueberry flavours, but also an inky edge of licorice, which continues on the 20-25 second finish. While clearly a lighter year for this cuvée, it’s not altogether unpleasant. However, I’m digging up my other bottles for autumn consumption. This bottle was worth 89 points to me, but we all know how variable 2004s can be from one bottle to the next...........................................TN Mike de Lange.

Here, the core is not quite medium intense, fully translucent garnet in colour and the rim is clearing. The nose is a tad more intense at medium-plus, but here too the gamey red currant & cherry notes are marred somewhat by a tell-tale pine-resin and cannabis element.
This wine is a little more than medium-bodied due to its decent extract, but not quite up to the usual Leroy standards. Almost pronounced raspberry- and blackcurrant flavours buffer the medium-plus acidity and polished medium tannins admirably, while the Boudots part of the assemblage imparts some 5-spice and typical rusty minerality. Texturally, this wine is quite pleasing as well and while the morello cherry finish seems to be a tad more dominated by its structure than the Chevillon, balance is nonetheless quite good for 20-25 seconds. Therefore, I’ll go out on a limb and give 90 points for this showing, while I suspect some upside to be unlocked in 5 years from now...................TN Mike de Lange.

Thanks go out to Martijn for giving us the opportunity to take a peek at how the most famous domaine of all fared in 2004. The core is medium intense, slightly translucent ruby with a bricking rim. The clearly less developed nose offers medium-minus intense impressions of again the 2004 greens, but also red flowers and raspberry.At medium-plus bodied this is the lightest Richebourg I ever tasted –not necessarily a bad thing in my book– with nonetheless a lot of power, as witnessed by pronouncedly intense and smoothly textured damson flavours. The high-quality medium tannins and near pronounced acidity provide excellent structural integrity and while not very complex (yet), some calcareous minerality and typical anise exert themselves on the 40-45 second finish of refined, soft & plummy fruitiness. Although this wine misses complexity at this point in its evolution, the material is clearly of high quality. Based on what I wrote above, I’ll give 91 points and as for possible upside, I have to report that 20 minutes in the glass brought out some oaky caramel and gamey fur notes, while the acidity became more prominent on the palate thereby emphasizing the tannins. An hour later, balance was re-established, so my suggestion would have to be to bury your bottles for 5-10 years; of course with all the caveats attached to the vintage..................TN Mike de Lange.

This was an off-theme surprise wine, but we didn’t mind. The core is medium-plus intense and opaque ruby in colour, with a purplish highlight. On the nose, medium intense plummy fruits –blackberries and damsons– have a sweetness to them which resembles ripe Cru Beaujolais, which impression is reinforced by a lactic edge. More air brings out a smoky oak note. Medium-plus bodied, thick layers of sappy primary fruit are being kept fresh by racy pronounced acidity and a lifting cretaceous mineral streak. The medium tannins are quite grippy, but ripe and support more complexity in the form of ink, laurel leaf and black cherry flavours. It’s not until the 25-30 second finish that some oaky caramel asserts itself, but it does not stand out at this point. I’ll give 90 points for the way this bottle showed, but it has to be noted that more exposure to oxygen made the woodiness (100% new pieces) more prominent both on the nose and mid-palate. If it improves its balance after a decade or more in the cellar, I might improve a point as the materials seem good enough.................TN Mike de Lange.

The core is medium intense translucent ruby in colour with a purplish hue, while the youthful and primary nose gives off medium-minus intense impressions of bubble gum-like sweet fruits and a touch of caramel. This medium-plus bodied wine is quite primary on the midpalate as well, where extracted medium-plus intense flavours of black ánd red fruits are supported by refreshing medium-plus acidity and supple medium tannins. There’s a soft edge to the fruits, which receives more interest from additional flavours of licorice and slightly volatile menthol. The usual rusticity of the commune is buried deeply and if there’s a nit to pick it’s that the 20-25 second finish shows quite a bit of new oak spice. I’ll give 87 points for this showing, but half a decade in the cellar might see this wine earn another two....................TN Mike de Lange.

This wine from my formerly favourite domaine has a medium-plus intense, sombre ruby coloured and nearly opaque core. The nose is not quite medium-plus intense, but offers up lifted notes of pure raspberry and a hint of ferrous minerals.A bit more full-bodied than is usual for this bottling at medium-plus, this wine is relatively nervously styled regardless. Pure and elegant, medium-plus intense flavours of again raspberry and iron are joined by a touch of gaminess and supported by medium-plus refined acidity and medium-minus smooth tannins, which latter have a modicum of grip to them. Mid-palate balance is quite good and while this will probably not be the most long-lived example of this cuvee, it sure is a great and balanced drink now. The finish does an easy 20-25 seconds worth of balance and as it is now, this wine is worth 88 points to me. It may improve somewhat over the next 5 years..................TN Mike de Lange

The bright but opaque ruby core is a little more than medium intense. The nose is no more than medium-minus intense, but shows reasonably precise impressions of tightly coiled black fruits, a whiff of luxurious oak and a hint of game. This wine seems lighter than the medium-plus body it is equipped with, due to the intensity of its pronounced acidy. The medium-plus tannins are definitely oak-enhanced, but not in an unpleasant manner even if the fruit remains relatively shy on the extracted mid-palate at this point in its evolution. Still, the medium intense flavours of ripe blackberries, dried thyme and iron take possession of the mouth with poise and authority. The grippy finish is a tad drying but still manages to up the intensity over its 30-35 seconds. This is a Grand Cru bottling which does its reputation justice, but it will need serious cellar time –I’m thinking at least 12 years, but probably more– to let the oak integrate and unlock its hidden riches. As it is now, it was worth 92 points to me..............TN Mike de Lange