The 1935 vintage

by Julie Berteloot 20 January 2025

20 January 2025 7.6K views

The quality of the 1935 vintage is quite honourable, although it does not make the same impression as the inevitable 1934 and the arrival of the war at the time of bottling.

Discover the 1935 wines in stock

Bordeaux

The 1935 vintage was uneven but still abundant. The summer was hot and dry and the month of September was very humid. It left little impression. In Sauternes, the vintage was rare but very good. Nevertheless, it was bottled just before the outbreak of war, hence its current rarity. The producer Pierre Larrieu remembers that the cows were thin. The harvest was sold later and rather cheaply.

Bourgogne

The 1935 vintage is rather good overall, even if it does not attract attention with the arrival of the war. The quality of the grapes is excellent, as are the whites. This vintage is also rare in Burgundy.

Champagne

Only the Roederer house produced a champagne in 1935. All the other houses preferred not to produce, even though the year was worthy of the great vintage champagnes.

Jean Hugel’s tasting memory

He has been a winegrower in Riquewihr like his ancestors since 1639.

“(…) if 1934 proved to be a great vintage throughout France, 1935 was especially so for the Alsatian vineyard (…) It shows no sign of maderization, the primary floral aromas have given way to deliciously complex and always lively notes.”

Creation of AOCs

The National Committee of Appellations of Origin was created on July 30, 1935 to combat fraud, overproduction, conflicts over vineyard boundaries and problems of poor sales. It is composed of merchants, winegrowers and representatives of the Ministries of Agriculture, Justice and Finance. The committee defines the production area, the choice of grape varieties, the maximum yield per hectare, the sugar content, the minimum alcoholic strength of the musts and the cultivation and winemaking processes. The Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) guarantees the authenticity and quality of a wine.