2014 DRC Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée-St-Vivant Grand Cru

“This was in a difficult place to taste a year ago in barrel. Quite a full dark purple on the nose, the fruit is notably darker on the nose, with more power than detail at first sniff. Some blacker fruit alongside the crushed strawberry, builds beautifully across the palate, sensual certainly and I am sure the sense of refined detail I look for in Romanée St-Vivant will come later. Very light coffee notes as well. Strawberries strengthen on the nose. Quite firm tannins at the moment, but excellent length.” (11/2021)

“Delicious savoury notes as well as some red fruit and candied citrus peel. An extremely polished texture and a spicy finish. A wine of great class and harmony that is often overlooked because this legendary estate has so many stars in its stable. (GB)” (02/2016)

“A deft but not invisible application of wood sets off the airy, cool and strikingly elegant nose that is composed by notes of both red and dark currant, a wide range of floral and spice elements as well as Asian-style tea scents. The refined and caressing middle weight flavors possess a sleek and cool mouth feel while retaining good definition on the firm but well-balanced and sneaky long finish that exhibits a bit less finesse than usual even if it is still quite fine.” (01/2017)

“The 2014 Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru was picked on 21, 22 and 23 September cropped at 31.6 hectoliters per hectare. Now this has a distinctly earthy bouquet, one that leads you into the dark woods. Yes, there is plenty of vivacious red berry fruit, here augmented with something autumnal, brown leaves on an October morning, moss and tree bark. Then with continued aeration, these shift away and are replaced by pure floral aromas. The palate is very precise on the entry with a touch of orange rind and mandarin complementing the crushed strawberry and raspberry fruit; there is a touch of spiciness towards the finish that exerts a gentle, yet insistent grip à la Richebourg. The persistence here is very impressive and it just seems to blossom in the glass until you have utterly succumbed to its charms. (NM)” (02/2017)

“Bright, full red. Restrained but very pure perfume of dark raspberry, black cherry, menthol, licorice and black pepper. Dense, silky and suave on entry, conveying a sexy sweetness to its juicy dark fruit, mineral and spice flavors. This wine struck me as comparatively feminine in style, but not for long, as it quickly went into a shell in the glass. Finishes very long, with firm-edged tannins, noteworthy saline complexity and superb precision. Bertrand de Villaine described this wine as "a bit chaotic" in the early going. (ST) 94+” (03/2017)

“Pale to mid garnet, lighter than the Échezeaux and Grands Échezeaux. A change of gear in aroma too, with sweeter red fruit, though not as sweet or red as on the Corton. Already beautifully fragrant and expressive on the nose and just a hint of oak spice and lightly smoky/mineral. But it is the fruit that is most expressive at the moment. With air, that mineral quality becomes more marked, with a light cedar quality adding to the impression of freshness. Again a touch of mint or balsam. Deep and supple on the palate, the acidity more marked than on the Échezeaux and Grands Échezeaux giving it a more streamlined shape on the palate, the tannins carried along by the acidity rather than holding everything in. With air, a little more stemmy. Really deep and with a more chocolate texture to the tannins on the finish, smooth but grainy. 18.5/20 points (JH)” (02/2017)