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.
91-94 Points Allen Meadows
A restrained but still wonderfully spicy nose consists of ripe aromas of poached plum, violet, the sauvage, newly turned humus-suffused earth and slightly more evident wood. The middle weight plus flavors possess excellent intensity and muscle along with plenty of minerality that becomes more apparent on the beautifully long finish where the only nit is a trace of warmth. This is already quite harmonious and a wine that should also age effortlessly over the next 15 to 20 years.
93-95 Points Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Aromas of sweet berry fruit, rich forest floor, smoked meats, wild plums and licorice introduce Rousseau’s 2019 Mazy-Chambertin Grand Cru, a medium to full-bodied, pretty and fine-boned rendition of this sometimes rather brooding site. Velvety but precise, it’s built around bright acids and sumptuous tannins. 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
94-96 points Vinous
The 2019 Mazy-Chambertin Grand Cru is clearly a step up from the Charmes-Chambertin, offering deeper and more intense red fruit, rose petal and undergrowth aromas. There is also a more tangible marine influence at play here. The palate is medium-bodied with very good structure. Elegant and poised toward the finish, which leaves hints of tobacco and truffle on the aftertaste. Superb. Quintessentially Rousseau.
93-96 Points Jasper Morris
Dense intense purple, offering a powerful nose here with a more mineral content, and a deeper darker fruit behind. Tasted after the Charmes-Chambertin, the Mazy delivers more weight and more structure, while retaining an excellent persistence. The fruit and alcohol are nicely balanced.