Vintage 2024

2024 was an unusually challenging year across many European vineyards. Some areas of France experienced one of the wettest vintages on record, while late frost, hail and high disease pressure caused havoc elsewhere. In Bordeaux it was a cool, wet year where terroir, hard work in the vineyard and meticulous selection during harvest were the difference between good and indifferent wines. Owing to heavy rain, vineyards on gravel or well-draining soils (for example, in the Médoc) fared better. The successes of Bordeaux 2024 will not be about power, but elegance, refinement, and a good balance of fruit, acidity and ripe tannins. Burgundy producers faced a more sobering reality. Hail and persistent rainfall cause acute problems in Chablis, while in the Côte d’Or several domaines recorded unprecedentedly low yields.

The general overview is for classically styled wines with perfume and silky elegance – though few of them. Germany also had to endure relatively small yields (the smallest in 50 years in the Mosel, for example), largely due to frost, but produced fresh, expressively fruity, high-acid Rieslings that promise good ageing potential. In Spain, Rioja experienced its wettest vintage since 2018. The extremes of heat and humidity required intensive work in vineyards across the country. In the southern hemisphere, conditions were more favourable. One of the more successful countries was New Zealand, with refined and ageworthy Central Otago Pinot Noirs a highlight.

The 2024 wines from Southern and Western Australia, and Victoria are likely to turn out to be of high quality, while high quality, classically proportioned wines can also be expected from Napa and Sonoma, albeit with lower yields than normal.