Domaine de la Romanée Conti, Grands Echezeaux Grand Cru 2014

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

The 2014 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru was picked on 23 and 24 September at 32.5 hectoliters per hectare. Slightly deeper in color compared to the 2014 Echézeaux, it is undeniably a tangible step up in intensity and complexity, offering disarming raspberry, crushed strawberry, and crushed limestone that almost verges on flintiness. It has beguiling purity and focus. The palate is medium-bodied with a noticeably grippy entry. It has a strong saline seam, structured but not a dense Grands Echézeaux. It gently fans out on the finish with pretty, mineral-soaked red fruit, although the aftertaste is not as prolonged as some of the greatest vintages I have tasted from this esteemed vineyard. Nevertheless, it remains a supremely gifted wine that will bestow two, possibly three decades of drinking pleasure. Tasted February 2017.

robert_parker95

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

The 2014 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru has a more expressive, perhaps more floral bouquet compared to the Echézeaux at the moment. There is a mineral component here that is discretely stitched into these aromatics. The palate is medium-bodied, quite saline on the entry with a little more density than its 'little brother' -- he mouth tingling the sides long after it has departed. This appears to be a step up from the Echézeaux at this prenatal juncture, exuding the class of this great grand cru.

vinous94

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

Bright medium red. At once more somber and higher-pitched on the nose than the Echézeaux, offering aromas of black cherry, dark berries, violet and bitter chocolate. A step up in texture and richness but densely packed and imploded today. At once powerful and cool, conveying terrific energy to its flavors of dark fruits, salty minerality, licorice and violet. This very long, powerful wine displays a downright chewy texture and yet there's noteworthy finesse to its tannins. Really glistens on the very long, rising finish. Forget about this beauty for a decade.

vinous94

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

Bright red-ruby. Very ripe aromas of black raspberry liqueur and dark chocolate. Fat and sweet on the palate; comes across as a bit roasted following the Echézeaux, as well as somewhat youthfully disjointed, as a strong spine of acidity still needs to mesh with the wine's fruit. Finishes with strong, slightly edgy tannins.

vinous94

Reviewed by: Stephen Tanzer

The 2014 Grands-Echézeaux Grand Cru from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti was a prelude to my revisiting that vintage in the Côte d’Or that autumn. It’s at a beautiful place right now. Vivid Morello cherries, wild strawberries and hints of pressed violet petals unfold on the nose. It is not the most intense I have encountered from this wine, yet the delineated nose is dazzling. The palate is tensile right from the start, prioritizing energy and verticality over horsepower, bright red fruit laced with oyster shell that almost reluctantly fans out on the finish. At nearly ten years of age, I see no reason not to crack one open now, but it will give pleasure over the next 15 years.

robert_parker94

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

The 2014 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru was picked on 23 and 24 September at 32.5 hectoliters per hectare. Slightly deeper in color compared to the 2014 Echézeaux, it is undeniably a tangible step up in intensity and complexity, offering disarming raspberry, crushed strawberry, and crushed limestone that almost verges on flintiness. It has beguiling purity and focus. The palate is medium-bodied with a noticeably grippy entry. It has a strong saline seam, structured but not a dense Grands Echézeaux. It gently fans out on the finish with pretty, mineral-soaked red fruit, although the aftertaste is not as prolonged as some of the greatest vintages I have tasted from this esteemed vineyard. Nevertheless, it remains a supremely gifted wine that will bestow two, possibly three decades of drinking pleasure. Tasted February 2017.