2017 Grands Echezeaux

The 2017 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru is about 60% whole bunches, matured in around 70% new oak. It has a tightly wound bouquet of dark cherry and iodine-tinged fruit that is very well defined, focused and detailed. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannin, the oak a little too vocal at the moment, perhaps (although I feel the fruit might have been a tad suppressed on the day of my visit). A subtle saline and black olive note emerges toward the tender finish. This is one of the most intense Grands Echézeaux, though it needs more personality to come through.

The 2017 Grands Echézeaux Grand Cru is a great success, unfurling in the glass with aromas of blackberries, wild berries, rich soil tones and espresso roast, framed by a lavish but nicely integrated touch of toasty new oak. On the palate, it's full-bodied, ample and layered, with a generous core of ripe but juicy fruit, concluding with an expansive, saline finish. While this is quite giving and charming by the standards of the appellation, it's the most concentrated wine in the Eugénie portfolio this year, and will likely prove the longest lived.

One hectare (around 2.5 acres). Five out seven barrels new. Barrel sample. Deep and spicy on the nose, that same dark purity of the Échezeaux but a little more aromatic. Darker, more black cherry and damson but also the freshness of wild fruits. A touch of vanilla sweetness and lots of spice. Tannins are firm and dry and almost chalky or sandy – ie you can feel the grain. Elegantly dry and fabulous length. Supple nevertheless and so beautifully cool on the finish. (JH)