Château Duhart-Milon
The vintage
1994 was a year of challenges. Rain was already present during an unusually mild winter and persisted throughout the months of April, May, and June. Although March had heralded spring with early budbreak, April put a halt to vegetation development with a frost episode that caused some damage. May 23 marked the onset of a relatively rapid and uniform flowering, occurring ten days ahead of the average. June experienced warm and rainy weather, while July and August saw average temperatures three degrees higher than the norm. July's thunderstorm precipitation provided the vine with the necessary water, and everything was going well during veraison.
By the end of August, 1994 ranked among the ten earliest years observed since 1952, with all the key elements for a great vintage coming together. Harvest began amid rain, but conditions turned excellent from September 20 onwards. The harvest unfolded smoothly: Merlot from September 13 to 19 and Cabernet Sauvignon from September 19 to 30.
Location
Pauillac is located on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, approximately 40km north of Bordeaux. With the tempering influence of the estuary and a great diversity of soils originating from both the Massif Central and the Pyrenees, Pauillac boasts exceptional climate and geological conditions for the production of outstanding wines.
Terroir
Château Duhart-Milon’s vineyard consists of a single block of vines adjacent to Château Lafite Rothschild, on the hillside to the west of the Carruades plateau. The property has 76 hectares of vines. The soil consists of fine gravel mixed with aeolian sand on a tertiary limestone.
Winemaking
Château Duhart-Milon is made according to traditional Bordeaux methods. The grapes are carefully sorted and placed in concrete or stainless-steel vats depending on their provenance for alcoholic fermentation. Gentle pumping over is carried out during fermentation to optimize extraction. Total maceration time is about 20 days before racking. Following this rigorous selection, the wine is blended and transferred to oak barrels (50% new).
Once the wines have undergone malolactic fermentation, they are transferred to French oak barrels made by the Tonnellerie des Domaines in Pauillac. Each barrel is tasted individually in December in order to determine which ones will be selected for the grand vin.
Tasting
A straight wine,dense and robust. Somewhat austere in character, yet displaying remarkable strength on the finish. The Cabernet Sauvignon contributes a delightful fruity quality.
Alcohol content
12.88
Grapes
Cabernet sauvignon
: 90 %
Merlot
: 10 %