| Tasting note |
The 2004 Brut Cristal has put on quite a bit of weight since I first tasted it earlier this year. It is a powerful, structured Cristal layered with considerable fruit. Chardonnay seems to play the leading role in 2004, at least today. Cristal is often accessible young, but that is far from the case here. This is a serious, painfully young Cristal that will require considerable patience. Readers who are willing to spend some time with the wine today will find a super-impressive, complete Cristal. By Antonio Galloni @ Wine Advocate, Dec 2010.
The 2004 Cristal is superb today. Bright and focused, the 2004 shows all of the tension and energy that has always been one of its signatures. The first hints of aromatic maturity are starting to develop, but the 2004 remains quite young and full of energy. I have always admired the 2004 (along with the best wines of the vintage) for its focus. In this bottle, the interplay of freshness from the recent 2018 disgorgement and richness gained through added time on the lees (which also results in lower dosage of 7 grams per liter) opens another window into the personality of Cristal. In 2004, the Pinot Noir is 57%, or a bit lower than normal, while the Chardonnay at 43% is correspondingly a touch higher. By Antonio Galloni @ Vinous, Dec 2019.
Exceptionally rich and dense, an exceptional wine that reveals itself in layers, from the first fruit attack to the mineral texture and the way it gradually fills the mouth. Selected from old vines, there is a great flavor in this wine, with the promise of many years' aging. By Roger Voss @ Wine Enthusiast, Dec 2012.
In contrast to a remarkably large number of 2004 Champagnes that are noticeably reduced, this is by contrast wonderfully elegant, pure and beautifully layered with its array of toast/yeast, citrus, floral and soft pear aromas. There is outstanding energy to the utterly delicious flavors that are supported by a remarkably fine effervescence before culminating in a crisp, lemony and impressively complex finish. This is head and shoulders more interesting than the 2006 version and moreover, this is very clearly still on the way up though I stress that the complexity is so good that it could easily be enjoyed now. In a word, terrific. By Allen Meadows @ Burghound, Jun 2017.
The 2004 Cristal strikes me as an absolute classic vintage for this iconic bottling, but it will only really show its complete potential with extended bottle age. This was a warm vintage that produced beautifully ripe, but not overripe grapes and a very fine harvest season that allowed grapes to be collected in optimal condition throughout the different Champagne sub-regions. It was also the largest crop on record in Champagne up to that time, as the pent up energy of the vines from the torrid and atypical summer of 2003 allowed for a very, very generous cropload the following year. Twenty to twenty-five percent of the 2004 Cristal was barrel-fermented, with some battonage used for a percentage of the cuvée. The nose on the ’04 is deep and utterly refined, wafting from the glass in a blend of apple, pear, brioche, a lovely touch of orange zest, a beautifully complex base of chalky soil tones. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and beautifully-balanced, with a lovely sense of reserve, superb mid-palate depth, zesty, pinpoint bubbles, crisp acids and laser-like focus on the nascently complex and stunning length and grip on the dancing finish. One can certainly drink the 2004 Cristal today with great enjoyment, but the real fireworks here are not going to start until this wine has rested quietly in the cellar for another decade! A stunning Cristal. By John Gilman, Mar 2018. |
