Cote de Nuits Wines

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Here is heaven in glass. The 2002 Grands Echezeaux possesses one of those bouquets that stops you in your tracks and makes you wonder whether it is worth ever drinking another Pinot Noir again. Sensational red cherry, wild strawberry and bergamot scents abound with a sense of translucency that could bring a tear to the eye, so have your tissues ready. The palate is tense and shimmers in the glass, the acidity nigh on perfect, the texture satin-like and the finish brimming with energy undimmed by bottle age. There is no greater way to remember the late Philippe Engel. Simply fabulous.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPThe 2002 Grands-Echézeaux Grand Cru is one of the finest wines that Philippe Engel released towards the end of his life. It has a transcendental bouquet that exudes shimmering red cherries and bergamot, so precise that you have to sit down and get your breath back. The palate is medium-bodied and imbued with balletic precision. As I have remarked before, the acidity is nigh perfect and the silky texture is to die for. Tasting this wine, I am tinged with sadness thinking how many more Engel could have made if it were not for his untimely passing. Tasted at dinner in Tokyo.Vinous Media | 97 VMThe rich vibrant, still almost purple, colour is noticeably deeper than the Echezeaux of the same vintage. The idea of youth continues with a fair whack of new oak showing on the bouquet. Dense and brooding, with considerable unresolved structure, quite high-toned acidity at first. Later on the fruit expands in volume to match and indeed subdue the acidity but the message from this bottle was to hold the wine for several more years before trying again. Tasted: January 2019.Jasper Morris | 95 JMLoads of sweet fruit here and the depth and class of a grand cru. Very stylish oak spice is well-integrated into the berry, mineral and smoke flavors of this concentrated, silky red. The acidity and tannins are harmonious and it finishes with a sandalwood aftertaste. Best from 2007 through 2025.Wine Spectator | 94 WSCool and reserved aromas are composed of spice, a hint of the sauvage, a touch of sandalwood and still largely primary dark currant scents. There is evident power, intensity and mid-palate concentration to the beautifully textured and delineated medium weight plus flavors that terminate in a still relatively tightly wound, firm and mildly austere finish. While it would no longer be a vinous crime to crack a bottle of this now, I would continue to advise holding the ’02 GE for another 4 to 6 years and it may need up to another decade before this reaches its ultimate apogee. Be that as it may, this is a really lovely effort of obvious class and grace.Burghound | 94 BH

The lovely warm-spice and delicate rooty notes pull you into this very elegant and sophisticated red Burgundy that has tons of fine tannin and a firm mineral core. Wonderful textures right through the finely chiseled palate, then a long, extremely steady finish. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 96 JSDelicate, light and pale in colour, this pure, scented Échézeaux shows how well the vines bounced back from the catastrophic 2016 harvest, when frost resulted in super concentrated yields of only 6hl/ha. Spicy, savoury and appealingly perfumed, with notes of red berries, fresh tobacco and green malt from 75% whole cluster fermentation, medium weight, sappy tannins, redcurrant and raspberry fruit and a slightly bitter, almost medicinal undertone. (Drink between 2025-2032)Decanter | 94 DECThe flamboyant 2017 Échézeaux Grand Cru is especially good this year, bursting from the glass with an extravagant bouquet of wild berries, rose petals, cinnamon, smoked duck and Asian spices. On the palate, it’s full-bodied, supple and velvety, with an expansive attack and superb depth and amplitude, its fleshy core of fruit framed by fine, melting tannins. Reminiscent of a modern-day version of the Domaine’s 1985 Échézeaux, this is another 2017 that has gained appreciably with its final months of élevage. Picked on the 18th, this was where the estate’s harvest concluded.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RPThe 2017 Grands-Echézeaux Grand Cru is a pretty big step up in this range, both in terms of depth, power and energy. Here the flavors are dark, while there is quite a bit of tannin lurking beneath. Black cherry, graphite, leather, smoke, spice and menthol infuse the 2017 with tons of virile, somber character. Readers will have to be very patient. A whole range of sepia-toned aromas and flavors shrouded in tannin add depth to an imposing Grands-Echézeaux built for cellaring. Harvest was on September 12.Antonio Galloni | 94 AG(Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echézeaux Grand Cru Red) A completely different nose offers up much spicier and slightly toastier aromas of red currant, pomegranate, sandalwood and an interesting hint of incense. There is excellent vibrancy to the attractively textured middle weight flavors that don’t have the minerality of the Corton but do offer slightly better depth and precision on the lingering finale that is shaped by relatively fine-grained tannins. This should be approachable a bit earlier than usual. (Drink starting 2029).Burghound | 93 BH

The 2017 Grands-Echézeaux Grand Cru is a pretty big step up in this range, both in terms of depth, power and energy. Here the flavors are dark, while there is quite a bit of tannin lurking beneath. Black cherry, graphite, leather, smoke, spice and menthol infuse the 2017 with tons of virile, somber character. Readers will have to be very patient. A whole range of sepia-toned aromas and flavors shrouded in tannin add depth to an imposing Grands-Echézeaux built for cellaring. Harvest was on September 12.Vinous Media | 96 VMThe lovely warm-spice and delicate rooty notes pull you into this very elegant and sophisticated red Burgundy that has tons of fine tannin and a firm mineral core. Wonderful textures right through the finely chiseled palate, then a long, extremely steady finish. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 96 JSThis is a compelling wine with its lovely, bright, forward cherry fruit accented with floral notes, attractive density and supple yet grippy tannins. Aubert de Villaine feels that Grands Échézeaux is closer to Romanée-St-Vivant in character than to its neighbour Échézeaux. The wine is fermented 100% as whole clusters, which brings a lovely note of rose petals to the lingering finish. To judge by the lush, accessible flavours, this should open relatively early yet have the substance to age for decades.Decanter Magazine | 95 DECFragrant purple colour, this is more elegant than the Echezeaux, but will it prove to be more concentrated? Yes, I think so on the palate, with multiple layers of rich red fruit, nothing black. Tasted from a Lagrange, hand-made barrel there was a sweeter and more complete mouthfeel. From François Frères the same wine was darker in colour with some black notes to the fruit, a little more spice, greater density but less finesse, a more obvious big brother to the Echezeaux. Tasted Nov 2018.Jasper Morris | 95-97 JMMore brooding and reserved than the Échézeaux that preceded it in the tasting, the 2017 Grands Échézeaux Grand Cru unwinds in the glass with an enticing bouquet of cassis, blackberries, blood orange, exotic spices and musk. On the palate, it’s full-bodied, ample and fleshy, with a more introverted, structured profile than the Échézeaux, its considerable reserves of concentrated fruit framed by an abundance of powdery tannin and succulent acids. Long and penetrating, this will reward sustained bottle age. The Grands Échézeaux was picked on September 12.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RPA cooler, more elegant and equally spicy nose of mostly red fruits and Asian-style tea is wonderfully fresh if notably more restrained. As is typically the case there is more size and weight to the broad-shouldered flavors that are shaped by firmer and slightly less fine-grained tannins on the impressively persistent finish. This is not as concentrated or powerful as it usually is but even so, it is going to require at least 10 years or so of patience and should amply reward 15 to 18.Burghound | 94 BH

For the first time, Maxime Chuerlin decided to use stems in his crown jewel, the 2019 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru, settling on 25% whole bunch for this year. This was an astute decision, because it lends freshness and more complexity to the bouquet of blackberry, undergrowth, tobacco and crushed limestone aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, hints of peppermint behind the black fruit and touches of white pepper and sage toward a finish that fans out wonderfully. A slam-dunk for Maxime Churlin. Five barrels produced, matured entirely in new oak.Vinous Media | 96-98 VM(Domaine Georges Noëllat Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru Red) In contrast to the expressiveness of the Echézeaux, this is aromatically more restrained and somber and only grudgingly reveals its more floral-suffused aromas of various dark berries, spice and lavender and violet scents. The sleek and impressively intense bigger-bodied flavors are also not especially dense with very good detail, all wrapped in a dusty, somewhat angular and short finish. Note that my score assumes that this become much more harmonious with a few years in bottle as the underlying material appears to be quite good. (Drink starting 2034)Burghound | 91-93 BH

The 2020 Grands Échézeaux Grand Cru is a striking young wine, offering up aromas of mulberries and cassis mingled with orange zest, exotic spices and rose petals. Full-bodied, seamless and complete, with an immensely layered, fleshy palate, it concludes with a long, penetrating, saline finish. Such is its fruit concentration that its rich, powdery tannins are almost imperceptible. Over the last decade, the Grands-Échézeaux has tended to take a back seat to the Romanée-Saint-Vivant and Richebourg, but that certainly isn’t the case in 2020.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPAn exceptionally dense purple. The bouquet suggests an exceptional wine. It has enormously more intensity than the preceding three wines, yet no sign of whole bunches, and just a light patina of oak. Rich mature fruit throughout. Dark strawberries with a suggestion of chocolate. Plump fruit backed by just enough acidity, long and graceful. Will these wines tighten up? Will tannins start to show beneath? For the moment they are smothered by the fruit. The longer in the glass, though, and the structure does appear. In terms of quality delivered in proportion to the fame of each appellation, the Echezeaux is the stand out wine from the Domaine this year. Drink from 2030-2045. Tasted Oct 2022.Jasper Morris | 97 JMThe 2020 Echézeaux Grand Cru is one of the standouts in this tasting. Opulent and sumptuous to the core, the Echézeaux is a real head-turner. I suppose it is not as complex as some of the other wines in this range, but as Aubert de Villaine once said to me about his Montrachet "You don’t always want complex, do you?" A rush of dark blue/purplish fruit, spice, chocolate, spice and lavender races across the palate. Readers will find a racy, hedonistic Burgundy that will drink well with minimal cellaring. What a wine!Vinous Media | 96 VMThe 2020 Echézeaux has a deep colour and a noticeably dark fruit character, with aromas of ripe blackberry, earth, and spice complemented by floral rose petal notes. The texture is supple and rich, and the wine is a noticeable step in intensity and concentration, underlaid with velvety tannins that linger on the palate. The grapes come from the domaine’s 4.67-hectare holdings, largely in the lieu-dit of Poulaillères, and were picked on 30 August and 1 September with a short break for rain; 15,361 bottles were made.Decanter Magazine | 96 DECAn exuberantly spicy and wonderfully floral nose exhibits additional aromas of poached plum, mocha, jasmine tea and an interesting hint of tangerine peel. The rich, concentrated and powerful bigger-bodied flavors possess an absolutely gorgeous mouthfeel thanks to the abundance of sappy dry extract that also buffers the firm core of ripe tannins shaping the stunningly long finish. This actually isn’t quite as refined as the Petits Monts, but it is definitely more powerful and imposing, as well as slightly more structured.Burghound | 95 BH

A lovely mid purple. Very perfumed and with density, I suspect with detail to follow as well. Succulent, and with amazing depth plus magical length. One or two darker fruit notes, stopping short of chocolate. But this is a profound and sensual Echezeaux from a domaine noted for its lighter style. Drink from 2030-2038. Tasted: November 2023.Jasper Morris | 96-98 JMThe 2022 Echézeaux Les Loachausses Grand Cru (not the easiest lieu-dit to pronounce but is actually a monopole of the Gros family) is the most taciturn on the nose amongst Anne Gros’ cuvées. There is a touch of crushed stone that develops in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with a lot of sucrosity on the entry. It has fine depth and is quite linear, and maybe it needs to muster a little more complexity and terroir expression on the finish. I’m sure it will.Vinous Media | 91-93 VMModerate wood influence can be found on the exuberantly spicy and smoky nose of mostly dark currant and violet scents. There is good energy to the delicious if not especially dense middleweight flavors that conclude in a firm finale that exudes focused power as well as a touch of warmth.Burghound | 91-93 BH