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Domaine de la Romanée-Conti
Domaine de la Romanee Conti
Red from Burgundy, France
SKU: 199921-FR04001
Alcohol Volume: 13%
$55,000.00 $52,800.00
Grape
Pinot Noir
Tasting Note
Vibrant, pure, spicy, distinctly floral and unusually high-toned for the vintage with big, powerful and concentrated almost to the point of painful intensity with its super ripe, palate staining flavors yet this remains regal, almost aloof and quite reserved on the hugely long finish. The focus is unbelievable and while it's hard to speak of subtle power, one can sense the vibrancy and depths of reserve that are still only hinted at now even eight years after the vintage. As seductive as the nose is and as awe-inspiring as the flavors are, the finish lasts literally for minutes, indeed I could still taste it the next day and I've noticed that this happens every time I am fortunate to have the '99. And, difficult as it is to believe, I'm beginning to think that my score is conservative. -Allen Meadows
What does this wine tast like?
Domaine de la Romanée-Conti
Domaine de la Romanée-Conti can trace its history back many centuries. The dukes of Burgundy donated a 1.8-hectare plot to the Abbey of Saint-Vivant. This was later sold to the Croonembourg family who renamed it Romanée. They also purchased the vineyard next door: La Tâche. These two great vineyards were sold once again with Romanée falling to Prince de Conti, hence becoming better known as Romanée-Conti. After several more changes of hands during its history, the domaine ended up under the ownership of Aubert de Villaine (son of Henri who had co-owned it with Henri Leroy, the father of Lalou Bize-Leroy, the driving force behind Leroy) in 1953. He was a judge at the Judgement of Paris tasting and he and his wife Pamela also run A&P Villaine in Bouzeron, producing excellent Aligoté.
The domaine now holds a cluster of vineyards that are second to none. DRC or, as it is simply referred to by some as “the domaine” is the largest proprietor of Grand Cru vineyards in Vosne-Romanée. On top of the monopole vineyards of La Tâche and Romanée-Conti, the domaine owns more than half of Romanée-Saint-Vivant, a third of Grands-Echézeaux and half of Richebourg. It also has holdings in Corton, Le Montrachet and Batard-Montrachet, and in great vintages, they also produce the Premier Cru Vosne-Romanée Cuvée Duvualt Blochet from young Pinot Noir vines sourced from various vineyards. The domaine’s Grand Cru Le Montrachet is one of the rarest and finest white wines produced. The Batard-Montrachet is not released commercially.
The old vines (nearing 50 years old on average) are farmed organically and biodynamically, yields are kept low by aggressive pruning (it is suggested that it takes three vines to produce one bottle), and harvesting is typically very late. Intervention in the winery is minimal, ie natural yeasts, new oak, no filtering, no destemming, etc.
These wines regularly receive perfect scores – from those blessed enough to taste them. In the words of Neal Martin the results are Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with “finesse, balance, poise and refinement like no other wine I can think of. Quite simply they have an unerring ability to maintain the freshness and poise over decades.” He concludes that if you are lucky enough to try one then “you may be in for an unforgettable experience”.
