Domaine Armand Rousseau is one of the most famous and best domaines in Burgundy. Based in Gevrey-Chambertin, the estate is formed of just over 15 hectares, over half of which is Grand Cru.
This is one of Burgundy’s greatest domaines – in terms of history, vineyard holdings and quality of wine. The original Armand Rousseau was at the forefront of the first wave of domaine bottling in the 1930s. He was succeeded by his son Charles in 1959, shortly after they had bought a significant slice of the Clos St Jacques vineyard. Today Eric, grandson of Armand, is in charge of the vines and cellar, with the help of his daughter Cyrielle.
The domaine produces pale, finely structured wines of great elegance and stamina. The simple principle of old (but not ancient) vines and sensible yields dictates the Rousseau style. Sometimes the wines can appear light in their youth, but they nearly always take on weight as they age.
92-95 Points Allen Meadows
Here too there is just enough wood to remark upon surrounding the well-layered blend of red and blue pinot fruit, earth and a plenitude of spice and floral elements. The wonderfully energetic, sleek and equally muscular larger-scaled flavors also brim with minerality on the refined, focused, balanced and even more persistent finish. This is terrific and a wine that should easily repay two decades of cellaring if you have the patience.
93-95 Points Robert Parker Wine Advocate
The 2019 Clos de la Roche Grand Cru opens in the glass with rich aromas of berry fruit, loamy soil, peonies, dark chocolate and cedar. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and elegantly muscular, it’s generous and enveloping, with velvety tannins and fine depth at the core. Bright and lively, it’s another wine that marries maturity with freshness. Cyrielle Rousseau told me that she began picking on September 12, with yields averaging out at around 35 hectoliters per hectare, and that this is the second vintage to deliver maturities sufficiently elevated that the domaine didn’t chaptalize a single cuvée. While Rousseau is never one to show all her cards, she did admit to liking 2019, saying that “they’re wines that evoke emotions—more so than 2018.” Deep, vibrant and concentrated, with ethereal bouquets and seamless structure, I’m inclined to think that—taken as a whole—this is in fact Rousseau’s finest vintage since 2012 or even 2010, though of course the most successful cuvées in 2016 and 2015 might be cited to challenge that assertion in detail. In any case, it’s a superb set of wines that will be worth tracking down even in today’s overheated Burgundy market. While preparing this report, I also revisited some of the domaine’s 2017s in my US office, and they showed well, too—even if the communal Gevrey-Chambertin struck me as rather more overtly oaky than I remembered it from barrel, or that one is indeed accustomed to expect at this stylistically restrained address.
93-96 Points Jasper Morris
Another fine medium intense purple. The nose speaks of a savoury elegance more than lush fruit. But quite discreet, with firm acidity behind, a little less complete through the middle. In these days of lush fruit, the Rousseau Clos de la Roche is quite a reticent wine and there will be many who will be looking to seek out this style of wine from among its richer counterparts.