Dégustation Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Verticale 2016, avec Déjeuner

We had over an hour to assess and enjoy these wines, so were able to revisit each multiple times.

• 2016 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Corton Domaine Prince Florent de Merode 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton Grand Cru

  Sit-down tasting with Aubert of the 2016 lineup. Very ripe black berry and cherry aromas with baking spice. Slightly leaner flavors still showcasing lack fruits, but with intense savory spice. Sneaky tannins give this a very Corton-like structure but in the most elegant fashion to start, then firming up middle through finish. Good+ weight. This might seem accessible, but I don't think it really will be within another 6-12 months.

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• 2016 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru

  Sit-down tasting with Aubert of the 2016 lineup. More black vs red fruit on both nose and palate with alluring perfume. Expanding from middle through finish with tannins starting to assert themselves as well. Lots of energy on very long finish that comes across as nearly perfectly balanced already. There is a bit of protruding new oak right now that bothered some people, but I expect that will easily integrate years before I would even contemplate opening a bottle. 95-96 point potential. Most preferred Richebourg today, but I respectfully disagreed.

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• 2016 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Sit-down tasting with Aubert of the 2016 lineup. Slightly reductive start. Also a bit smoky and black fruited on nose for Vosne Grand Cru. This is even meatier, denser than Romanée St. Vivant with a reticent middle, even brooding, then great fefinement on long, long finish. As great as this wine will be, I preferred the Romanée St. Vivant. 94-96 point potential.

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• 2016 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  Sit-down tasting with Aubert of the 2016 lineup. Ripe black and red cherry on both nose and palate. Less perfumed/ spice aromatic character vs Romanée St. Vivant or Richebourg, but there is a seamless harmony here between aromas and flavors that is stunning for a wine this young. Everything is already so integrated and elegant and hinting at unfolding layers upon layers of complexity. Perhaps a bit drying right now on its finish, but I fully expect that will easily soften. 96-98 point potential.

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• 2016 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée-Conti

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée-Conti Grand Cru

  Sit-down tasting with Aubert of the 2016 lineup. OK, the La Tâche was darn good, but then there is this wine. Precocious display of bright red fruit aromas with Asian five spice, leading seamlessly to the same (or more) on the palate. Oh by the way, you can't miss the structure but it is in near-perfect step with the fruit, showing silky tannins and bright acidity. Everything here is so bright and lively with even more complexity already vs La Tâche, unfolding, closing, opening again and again. This might even surpass 2015. Monumental 98-99 point potential.

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• 2017 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Montrachet

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Sit-down tasting with Aubert of the 2016 lineup. OK, this isn't from 2016, but we know there is no 2016 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Montrachet. So they brought out the 2017, which thrilled me more than if they served the collaborative 2016 Montrachet.
  
  Delicately floral start with a faint hint of (good?) reduction. Yellow apple with meyer lemon here. Very bright, very 2017 (a white Burgundy vintage that thrills me) in a manner that comes across as less fleshy vs typical Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Montrachet. But at the same time, there is a richness with melon, honeycomb and poached pear character, yet finishing with that meyer lemon and lemon peel. Very good density with beeswax on finish and very good+ length. 95-96+ point potential.

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• 2006 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Bâtard-Montrachet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru

  Immensely rich and complex with so much baked apple, peach, honeycomb, butterscotch plus so much more. Very good weight, aging mostly gracefully, but I would think this better now vs any time in the future.

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• 2009 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru

  So young, nearly jammy and incredibly backward. This always showed its concentration, power and potential, but barely started giving pleasure after an hour+ in glass. This makes me so glad I opened/ tasted / decanted our bottle at a dinner a few months back because it was magical.

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• 2001 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, La Tâche Grand Cru

  This has always been a very complex wine that demands your attention, and today's bottles were no exception. Burly red fruit with savory spice and so much tannin and earth that some people thought this much too young (my vote), while others thought it advanced (not so much). This is so powerful without being a powerhouse, and I expect will reward lots more cellar time. At least that is my plan for the two bottles resting in my cellar. 93 points based on today's assessment, but I think the wine is substantively even better.

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