Beschreibung:

Echézeaux--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "Unquestionably the finest Echezeaux I have encountered from this famed estate, the 2003 explodes from the glass with candied raspberries, violet, and red cherries. Stunningly marrying elegance with richness and density, this medium to full-bodied wine is ample, pure, and velvety-textured. Loads of sweet red fruits are found in its persistent, sensual character. Drink it over the next 12-14 years." Pierre Rovani, Wine Advocate #160 (August 2005) Grands Echézeaux--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "A stunningly pure and distinctly floral black pinot fruit nose that displays spice, plum and hints of smoke and animale that introduces round yet structured, muscular yet accessible flavors of phenomenal richness and power. This is a big wine that combines power and finesse though it is a good deal less elegant than it usually is but it is forceful, powerful and exceptionally long." BH, January 1, 2006 Romanée St Vivant--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "In contrast to the aromatic explosiveness of the Grands Ech, this is a good deal more reserved but much more elegant with floral and subtle spice notes adding nuance to the upper register ripe black fruit aromas that are clearly pinot in basic character. The flavors aren't as big or muscular as the Grands but there is better precision, elegance and purity here with strikingly complex and refined flavors that are supple on the mid-palate but quite firm on the finish. There is the barest trace of warmth but it's a background note and this is superbly classy juice. The '01 RSV laid to rest the now dated notion that this wine isn't at the same level as the rest of the range here and this hammers home the point with authority. A great wine of enormous class and style and it is perhaps the freshest wine in the range in 2003." BH, January 1, 2006 Richebourg--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "Violets, roses, raspberries, and red cherries emanate from the 2003 Richebourg. Full-bodied, deep, and hugely concentrated, it is muscular, firm and displays the firmest structure of the Domaine de la Romanee-Conti's 2003s. Soy sauce, tar, chocolate, and dark fruits are found in its focused, audacious personality. Its impressively persistent finish is studded with highly present tannin. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2025." Pierre Rovani, Wine Advocate #160 (August 2005) La Tâche--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "An incredibly fine and pure aromatic profile that is first and foremost ripe but this does not detract from the usual La Tâche aromatic fireworks as the highly perfumed, seductive, spicy and pungent floral notes makes for an utterly brilliant nose that is a good deal more nuanced than that of the Richebourg. The flavors are presently somewhat understated and while there is superb concentration, I was quite surprised that there is almost a reserve here, even a certain coolness that is extremely rare for a vintage that is essentially generous and overt in basic character. But perhaps what I admire the most here is the transparency, which is again relatively rare in this vintage, and the overall harmony of expression. In short, this is a wine of finesse and purity because even though it is dense, it remains balanced and never heavy. To be sure, this is very ripe with finishing notes of plum, mocha and coffee, it is one powerful wine that possesses huge length and it should be capable of lasting 50 years. This should ultimately be a great La Tâche though whether it can rival such vintages as the '99, '90, '64,'62, '49, '45 and '37, time will tell but it might as there is a huge underlying reservoir of potential here." BH, January 1, 2006 All Domaine de la Romanée-Conti
Above 15 magnums per lot
2003 DOMAINE DE LA ROMANEE CONTI "Co-director Aubert de Villaine described 2003 as a vintage that "gave us really superb raw materials but at the cost of fully 45 to 50 of our normal production. The average yield across all of our reds was only 16.6 hl/ha. After a tumultuous growing season that saw everything from killing frosts to killing heat, we began the harvest on August 25th and harvested until September 1st. What I thought was interesting about the growing season though was just how varied it was. For example, by the middle of May the vines were already in a very advanced vegetative state and the flowering was finished at the beginning of June. However from one day to the next, there could be as much as 12 to 150C difference. The other key aspect of the growing season was how fast the vineyard progressed from one stage to the next. As you know, in Burgundy we have the old rule of thumb of 100 days from the flowering to the harvest but in 2003, we barely had 80 days between flowering and ripe fruit ready to pick. It was truly amazing. The heat of course gave us very tiny berries, which of course delivered very high dry extract levels. In terms of the harvest, there was no rot at all but it was necessary to eliminate withered and sunburned grapes. Sugars were excellent and there was no chaptalization. The pHs were high, coming in between 3.6 and 3.7 but we did not acidulate as we felt that the combination of high tannin and sugar contents coupled with low acidities actually gave us exceptionally well-balanced wines. I was a bit concerned at first because when we initially racked off the wines into barrel, the colors were black and the aromas surmature. But bit by bit, the freshness has returned and with the exception of the Echizeaux, none of the wines seem exceptionally ripe. The terroirs have begun to assert themselves and I am extremely optimistic that 2003 has given us genuinely great wines. While it is of course much too early to say, it's entirely possible that the '03s will rival our '47s one day." I agree with de Villaine's take on the '03s as several of them are destined to be great wines but, and this is the key point, they will be great wines in the context of the vintage. In other words, it's a bit like arguing over which vintage you prefer between '47 and '49, or '52 and '53, or '59 and '62 or '90 and '93; in each pair, you have one vintage that was very ripe, generous and rich versus another that is more classically structured, delicate and transparent. There is no right or wrong choice but in point of fact, each of them produced great wines but in sometimes radically contrasting styles. Such will very likely be the case with the '03s. I think it's telling when de Villaine, only half-jokingly, commented that if it were commercially feasible (which it isn't), he would bottle the entire 2003 vintage in magnums." BH January 1, 2006 Echézeaux--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "Unquestionably the finest Echezeaux I have encountered from this famed estate, the 2003 explodes from the glass with candied raspberries, violet, and red cherries. Stunningly marrying elegance with richness and density, this medium to full-bodied wine is ample, pure, and velvety-textured. Loads of sweet red fruits are found in its persistent, sensual character. Drink it over the next 12-14 years." Pierre Rovani, Wine Advocate #160 (August 2005) Grands Echézeaux--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "A stunningly pure and distinctly floral black pinot fruit nose that displays spice, plum and hints of smoke and animale that introduces round yet structured, muscular yet accessible flavors of phenomenal richness and power. This is a big wine that combines power and finesse though it is a good deal less elegant than it usually is but it is forceful, powerful and exceptionally long." BH, January 1, 2006 Romanée St Vivant--Vintage 2003 magnums (3) "In contrast to the aromatic explosiveness of the Grands Ech, this is a good deal more reserved but much more elega