Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands Échézeaux 2018

P.O.A

Availability
In stock
Volume
750ml
Varieties
Region/Country
Burgundy, France
Rating
97 points

Vintages

2018

Description

Domaine de la Romanée Conti is co-owned by the de Villaine and Leroy/Roch families, the former successors to Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet who bought the vineyard of La Romanée Conti in 1869, the latter since acquiring the shares of other descendants of Duvault-Blochet in 1942. The Domaine is today run by Aubert de Villaine. Many people in Burgundy just refer to 'DRC' as the Domaine. The Domaine has 25 hectares of vineyards, all Grand Crus. As well as the 1.8-hectare monopole La Romanée Conti, the Domaine purchased its other monopole, La Tâche, in 1933, along with significant holdings in the grand crus of Richebourg, Romanée-St-Vivant, Grands Échezeaux, Échezeaux, and Le Montrachet at various points in the 19th and 20th centuries. The Domaine is the largest owner of each of the red wine grand crus.

The wines are made by Alexandre Bernier, in succession to Bernard Noblet. Whole clusters are used (no destemming) with a long vatting time to avoid excesses of heat. Yields are mind-numbingly low and the winemaking is traditional and perfectionist. These are not merely among the most sumptuous wines of Burgundy but certainly the most stylish. Ancestor Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet was an advocate of harvesting late in order to ensure optimum ripeness, a philosophy to which his descendants adhere today.

The small commune of Vosne-Romanée is the Côte de Nuits’ brightest star, producing the finest and most expensive Pinot Noir wines in the world, and boasting no fewer than eight Grand Cru vineyards. Its wines have an extraordinary intensity of fruit that manages to combine power and finesse more magically than in any other part of the Côte d’Or. The best examples balance extraordinary depth and richness with elegance and breeding. In the village of Flagey-Échezeaux, lying almost entirely within the Échezeaux Grand Cru itself lies a much smaller, more exclusive Grand Cru that is made up of the best one of the 12 vineyards that are used to make up the two Grands Crus. The other 11 are merged together to create the Échezeaux Grand Cru, but the single grandest vineyard of them all, which is about 18.6 acres, is designated with the Grands title. Yields are also generally lower, and in fact, usually, only about 3,000 cases per year of wine are produced. The number of producers is a fraction of that of Échezeaux itself.

Ratings

Score
97 points
Reviewer
Inside Burgundy
Review

The purple colour is even more concentrated here. Heady, densely wound fruit, a greater suppleness than the Echezeaux, more flesh on the bones, sumptuous dense black fruit notes, brought back to base camp by the freshness of the finish. The lightest dusting of cocoa powder was less evident on the Echezeaux. The pinpoint pricks of fresh mineral acidity do this wine a world of good. Perfect harmony

Score
96 points
Reviewer
Decanter
View Reviewer
Review

Showing more tannin and backbone than DRC's Echézeaux bottling, which tends to be the case, this comes from vines aged between 70 and 90 years old and benefitted from its cooler, more moisture-retentive soils in 2018. Intensely spicy, with clove and tobacco pouch aromas, impressive texture and weight, refreshing supporting acidity, and lots of underlying concentration.

Specifications

Closure
Cork
Serving Temp.
12-14 °C
Alcohol
13.5%
Cellar until
Now - 2050

Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Grands Échézeaux 2018

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The Reserve Cellars. ABN 89621364994 Liquor License 196883. The Reserve Cellar supports the responsible service of alcohol. It is against the law to sell or supply alcohol to, or obtain alcohol on behalf of, a person under the age of 18 years. WARNING: Under the Liquor Act 1992, it is an offence to supply liquor to a person under the age of 18 years (Penalty exceeds $6,000). for a person under the age of 18 years to purchase or receive liquor (Penalty exceeds $500).

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