Beschreibung:

LA TACHE The La Tâche vineyard is wholly-owned by Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC). DRC, one of the world's most respected producers who owns the two most prestigious monopole vineyards (the other being Romanée-Conti) in addition to vines in other top vineyards. The simple mention of the venerable DRC in general and La Tâche and Romanée-Conti more specifically always elicits an ebullient response - memories are brought to life and experiences retold that truly express how drinking these wines can transcend one to another world. They are in a word, astonishing - a clear tribute to balance, finesse and refinement. Aubert de Villaine, co-owner of DRC, believes that "nothing is more difficult than to act simply: the ideal is to do nothing." He certainly takes this approach in the vineyard and with his very traditional approach to winemaking. De Villaine eschews chemical treatments and employs the services of agronomist Claude Bougignon for continued analysis of his vineyards. Although DRC is not a bonafide biodynamic vineyard, a portion of La Tâche and Grands Ech©azeaux adhere to these principals. They follow the lunar calendar and institute special preparations for the soil. Since 1986, DRC has implemented organic viticulture. Grapes are not de-stalked and cuvaison typically lasts thirty days with fermentation completed at relatively low temperatures. All wines are matured in 100 new oak from the Trongais forest and delivered to their own coopers. The wine is un-filtered and any racking done is by gravity flow. It is incredibly difficult not to compare the monopole vineyards of La Tâche and Romané e-Conti. La Tâche (6.06 hectares) is more than three times larger than that of Romanée-Conti (1.81 hectares) and produces 1,800 cases on average per vintage relative to the miniscule 450 cases of Romanée-Conti. This was not always the case as part of what is now La Tâche was originally labelled as Les Gaudichots. At the turn of the 19th century, the La Tâche vineyard, then owned by Claude-François-Viénot, a négociant in Dijon, sold his vines to Guillaume Basire to settle debts. The vineyard then passed to General Liger-Belair by marriage and remained in his family until 1933. For most of the 19th century, a large part of Les Gaudichots, a lieu-dit adjoining La Tâche, was known in title deeds as Tâche Gaudichots or Tâche Gaudichottée. Indeed the issue remained confused until court proceedings in 1932 and the eventual establishment of the appellation contrôllée of La Tâche in September 1936. The Duvault-Blochet family, the ancestors of the de Villaines acquired parcels of Les Gaudichots throughout the 19th Century including in 1862 a large parcel from M. Morellet and in 1866 a southern portion from M. Lausseure. Each of these vineyards was also referred to as Tâche Gaudichots. In 1932 the Liger-Belair family sought to limit the rights to the La Tâche designation to the original Joly de Bevy vineyard, but lost after an extensive tasting and an official visit to the vineyard by the judge. Thus, the Gaudichots vineyards of de Villaine and Chambon (descendants of Duvault-Blochet) were able to be designated as La Tâche. When in the following year the Liger-Belair heirs sold by auction the original La Tâche vineyard, Edmond Gaudin de Villaine and Jacques Chambon became the sole owners of the present boundaries of La Tâche. Aubert de Villaine best contrasts La Tâche and Romanée-Conti: " Romanée-Conti, which is oriented toward seduction, La Tâche is a severe wine that is quite vertical, in the image of a sword. But this hard and vertical structure becomes velvety with time, and then the seduction emerges." La Tâche--Vintage 1966 Côte de Nuits, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Level: 4.5cm; missing vintage tag, loose label 1 bottle per lot