Romanée Conti, Domaine de la Romanée Conti 1989

Description

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DOMAIN & OF THE CUVÉE
Country/region: Burgundy
Appellation: Romanée-Conti
Domain: La Romanée-Conti
Classification: Grand Cru
Red color
Owner: Domaine de la Romanée-Conti
Area: 2 ha
Yield: 25 hl/ha
Production: 6000 bottles
Grape varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Viticulture: Biodynamic

ABOUT THE DOMAIN
The name Romanée-Conti evokes a great thrill among wine lovers around the world. In 1760, Prince Louis-François de Bourbon-Conti acquired a plot in Vosne-Romanée, planted by the priors of Saint-Vivant, before dying in 1776. Confiscated during the Revolution, this plot was sold at auction in 1794, then was renamed Romanée-Conti, a name which gave life to the most prestigious estate in Burgundy on this 1.8 hectare plot.
In 1879, Jacques-Marie Duvault Blochet purchased this property. Today, Henry-Frédéric Roch, Lalou Bize-Leroy and their director Aubert de Villaine are the owners. The Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC) has 25 hectares of vines in Vosne, mainly on the grands crus of the commune: La Tâche, Romanée-Saint-Vivant, Richebourg, Echézeaux, Grands-Echézeaux and of course Romanée-Conti . In Côte de Beaune, the estate recently acquired the leasehold operation of three plots in Corton, adding to its legendary vines of Montrachet and Bâtard-Montrachet (whose confidential production is not marketed).
Romanée-Conti attracts all the attention, but the other great wines of the estate are not left out thanks to the impeccable work carried out both in the vineyard (biodynamically grown) and in the vat room (where the vinification of whole harvests is carried out). . Yields are extremely low and some wines like Montrachet are not vintaged every year due to the small quantity produced (this was the case in 1992 and 2016). Its price obviously lives up to its reputation.

ABOUT THE VINTAGE
Acquired by the Prince of Conti in 1760, this 1.85 ha plot produces hardly more than 6,000 bottles per year of this mythical and exceptional wine. To hope to obtain one, it is generally necessary to buy the variegated case of twelve bottles of the different vintages of the domain.
After the French Revolution, the estate was declared national property. La Romanée Conti has known many owners, notably the Duvault-Blochet family, who acquired several other plots, including La Tâche, Richebourg and Echezeaux. Today, each bottle of Romanée Conti bears the double signature of Aubert de Villaine and Henry-Frédéric Roch.
Romanée Conti was the last vine in Burgundy to resist phylloxera, but the shortage of carbon disulphide during the Second World War led to its destruction in 1945. From 1946 to 1951, no vintage was produced.
The vinification and aging conditions are exemplary. Numerous sortings are carried out in the vineyards and in the cellar to keep only the best fruits. Nothing is left to chance: the grapes from vines that are too young are discarded and resold to the Burgundy trade. The wine is aged in new oak barrels, selected three years previously and dried by the estate’s cooper. This meticulous attention to detail allows the terroir to be fully expressed and to produce this exceptional wine. We find in this sumptuous wine aromas of magnificent complexity evoking rose, violet, spices, truffle and leather.