Domaine Armand Rousseau Clos Saint-Jacques 1er Cru Magnum 1.5L 2017

Domaine Rousseau owns one-third of the clos, with most of it in the sunniest and warmest spot against the wall. This combines impressive depth and structure with the freshness that you always get in the best wines from this renowned premier cru. Aged in 70% new wood, this has the concentration and texture to age impressively in bottle. Drink 2026-2035.

The 2017 Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Saint-Jacques 1er Cru has a bright and youthful nose. Fine delineation with exuberant dark berry fruit, this still needs more bottle age to subsume the oak. Wonderful redcurrant, cranberry notes develop, with orange blossom hints. The palate is medium-bodied with finely-chiseled tannins and exquisite balance, yet it clams up toward the finish. Huge potential, but it needs time in bottle. Tasted blind at the Wallace brothers' Xmas dinner. Drink 2028-2048.

Here the wood treatment is equally subtle on the restrained nose that displays fresh and cool aromas of red currant, wet stone, tea and forest floor. Like the Ruchottes the mouthfeel of the middle weight flavors is quite sleek and ultra-intense while flashing plenty of minerality on the strikingly well-detailed finish that displays focused power and superb length. This is an exercise in harmony and grace and while it should be approachable after only 6 to 8 years, it should age effortlessly for several decades. Drink through 2032+.

The 2017 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos Saint-Jacques is being matured in 80% new oak, and it was the one wine in the cellar that was quite strongly marked by its time in barrel when I tasted it. Behind the prominent framing of cedary oak lurks a pretty bouquet of red and black berry fruit, orange rind, rich soil tones and peony. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, tangy and open-knit with a vanillin-inflected finish. I suspect that the final assemblage will be more integrated than the single barrel, but in its structure and overall profile, this looks to be reminiscent of Rousseau's 2007 Clos Saint-Jacques.