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 and Henri-Frederic Roch. Many people in Burgundy just refer to ‘DRC’ as “the Domaine”.
The domaine has 30 hectares of vineyards, all Grand Crus. As well as the the 1.8 hectare monopole La Romanée Conti, the Domaine purchased its other monopoly, La Tâche, in 1933, along with significant holdings in the grand crus of Richebourg, Romanée St Vivant, Grands-Echezeaux, Echezeaux, and Le Montrachet at various points in the 19th and 20th centuries. Corton was added in 2009 with Corton-Charlemagne to be released in 2018. The Domaine is the largest owners of each of the red wine grand crus.
97 Points Allen Meadows
In contrast to the prior wines, this is all but aromatically mute and requires extended swirling to coax the ripe but wonderfully fresh aromas of dazzlingly spicy, floral and essence of dark cherry scents to reveal themselves. As is usually the case, there is even better size, weight and mid-palate density to the big-bodied and very serious mineral-driven flavors that possess that wonderful inner mouth perfume along with a highly seductive texture that gradually gives way to a hugely long finish that is supported by dense but relatively fine tannins that provide plenty of grip while making clear that this is going to develop and last over the next 50 years, and more is not out of the question. Brilliant.
98 Points William Kelley (Wine Advocate)
The 2019 Richebourg Grand Cru is a magical wine, even at this early stage, and it has amply realized all the potential it showed in barrel. Soaring from the glass with aromas of sweet wild berries, blood orange, Indian spices and rose petals, it’s full-bodied, ample and velvety, with a sumptuous, enveloping core of vibrant fruit and a seamless, multidimensional profile. Revealing immense concentration, its chassis of perfectly ripe, refined tannins only makes itself felt on the finish, but its charm is deceptive, because this Richebourg is holding plenty in reserve for the future.
This was a particularly memorable tasting at the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. Revisiting the bottled 2019s was thrilling, as these are some of the most sensual, dramatic young wines I’ve ever tasted at this address; and the young 2020s, tasted from barrel (with the exception of several cuvées that had been recently racked), show immense potential too.
A few small evolutions have been made in the cellars in the last few years, with Tonnellerie La Grange increasingly in evidence alongside historically dominant François Frères on the red side of the ledger, and barrels from Séguin Morey, Damy and Taransaud to be found in the new room devoted to the domaine’s white wines. Bottling is also a touch earlier than in the past.
98 Points Jasper Morris
No deeper in colour than the Romanée St-Vivant but expressing a fresher rim. Here there are so many waves of flavour and that sense of precision which indicates that the Richebourg transcends the gourmand style of the vintage. It is perfectly poised in ripeness, while the peonies and dark fruit complement the fresher red fruit, fresh white pepper behind, a wine in its infancy. Picked at the perfect moment. Exceptional length. In relation to their different appellations, this is my standout of the tasting.