Domaine de la Romanee-Conti

Collectors often talk about “bucket list bottles”, but Domaine de la Romanee Conti sits in a different category altogether. There’s a steadiness and unparalleled confidence to DRC wine that comes from generations of doing things the slow, difficult way. No theatrics. No reinvention of every vintage. Just calm, disciplined French wine driven by place.

As for who owns Domaine de la Romanee Conti, the answer hasn’t really changed: the de Villaine and Leroy/Roch families share stewardship. It’s a long-term partnership, and you can feel that patience in the way the domaine works. The approach to farming, the tight control of yields, even the timing of releases reflects that quiet, consistent outlook.

The vineyards in Vosne-Romanée aren’t big. In fact, what strikes you most when you walk through them is how little land there is to work with, and how many decisions rely on someone’s hands rather than machinery. Limestone, clay, old vines, small parcels; it’s terroir that demands attention to detail. This is French wine rooted in discipline, where every detail exists to protect the clarity of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grown on these slopes.

The flagship Romanée-Conti parcel covers only 1.8 hectares, yet it produces one of the most recognised Pinot Noir expressions anywhere. The wine doesn’t rush. Aromatics build in layers rather than bursts, the tannins feel almost sculpted, and the evolution in bottle happens at its own pace and often over several decades. It doesn’t try to be noticed; it simply becomes clearer with time.

La Tâche takes a slightly different path, offering a darker, firmer style of Pinot Noir that grows more coherent as it ages. Montrachet, the domaine’s benchmark Chardonnay, carries its richness with an easy kind of authority. There’s weight, yes, but also a mineral line that keeps it steady long after the first glass.

The rest of the range adds further angles. Grands-Échezeaux leans into structure, while Échezeaux tends to be more open in its youth without losing shape. Romanée-Saint-Vivant is often more aromatic, almost lifted, and Corton brings a firmer, earth-forward profile that has become a useful lens into the domaine’s style. Each wine follows the same underlying philosophy, though never in the exact same way.