2011 Romanee St Vivant

Sweet rose petals, violets, mint, anise and red berries lift from the glass in the 2011 Romanée-Saint Vivant. Exotic, floral and wonderfully lifted, the 2011 is pure grace and femininity at this stage. Hard candy, flowers and spices reappear on the focused, beautifully delineated finish. The 100% whole clusters are very nicely balanced.

The 2011 Romanee-St-Vivant Grand Cru has an appealing, very fragrant bouquet with pure blackberry, boysenberry, black tea and wilted rose petals that are all beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, fine acidity and a tightly wound, mineral-rich finish that just tapers a little when I wanted it to fan out across the mouth. Still, I would afford this three or four years in bottle as there is great potential. I have been visiting Jeremy and Alec Seysses at Domaine Dujac for several years now, and it is always one of my favorite ports of call. Alec, looking surprisingly chipper for a new dad had taken time off nappy duty to guide me through the 2011s this year. I have to confess that I was concerned by the conspicuous nature of the new oak on both their negociant label wines and the entry Village Crus. I felt that 35% new oak tended to overwhelm the fruit and terroir and occasionally impart drying finishes, which is why my scores are parsimonious here. As I tasted through the range toward the flock of Grand Crus the oak seemed better assimilated, although I would still maintain that the wine is of such quality that the present level of oak risks being superfluous to requirements. All the negociant label wines were bottled before Christmas. Importers: The Sorting Table, Napa, CA; tel. (415) 491-4724; Chambers & Chambers Wine Merchants, San Francisco, CA; tel. (415) 642-5500