The colour is light garnet. On the nose very delicate, with a bouquet leaning towards mint, spices and wood. In the mouth very elegant and subtle, with light but firm tannins. The aftertaste is fruity and medium long.
With time the experience keeps changing, which is to be expected from a wine of this reputation.
This wine is made by Société Civile du Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in Burgundy, which produces white and red wines under various denominations. DRC is widely considered among the world’s greatest wine producers and the bottles it makes are among the world’s most expensive. It takes its name from the domaine’s most famous vineyard: Romanée-Conti.
Romanée-Conti is an Appellation d’origine contrôlée created in 1936 and a Grand Cru vineyard for red wine in the Côte de Nuits subregion of Burgundy. It is situated within the commune of Vosne-Romanée and is a monopole of the winery Société Civile du Domaine de la Romanée-Conti. The production is limited to some 3’000-8’000 bottles a year (5’673 in 2011).
I had the opportunity of drinking this bottle while visiting a friend in China, who let me pick freely from his cellar. At first, I didn’t recognise it was the ONE. I thought it could be a lesser wine of Domain de la Romanée-Conti. Better so, otherwise I would not have dared opening it.
I never thought I would one day have the chance of tasting a sip of Romanée-Conti. Not only that, I basically drank all the bottle by myself.
For Burgundy, the 2011 vintage was a difficult one. Nevertheless, online this bottle sells for a hefty 20’000 CHF (2’666 CHF a glass).
Country: France
Region: Burgundy
Grapes: Pinot Noir
Type: Red
Vintage: 2011
Producer: Domaine de la Romanée-Conti
Price range: Luxury (>100 US$)
Pascal’s Enjoyment Index: 4/5