2002 Assorted 6-pack Grand Cru

The 2002 Romanée-Conti Grand Cru was picked on September 21 at 25hl/ha. It is a very fine wine, if not belonging to the very highest echelon of Romanée-Conti like the 1999 or 2005. Appearance-wise, it has a little more degradation on the rim than expected. It feels uncompromising and forthright on the nose and I can just feel that stem addition, hints of bell pepper and iron filings complementing the brambly red fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with a silky texture, perfect acidity and linearity. It is here that this Romanée-Conti comes into its own, conveying unerring symmetry and poise and extraordinary length. It is by no means a perfect wine yet it is disarmingly alluring. 5,548 bottles produced. Tasted at the Romanée-Conti dinner at the Connaught Hotel.

Mid ruby. Sumptuous appeal on the nose but with just the merest hint of something green and vegetal? Unreadable at this stage and very brutish but surely this will be great? Not showing brilliantly well at the moment cf say Romanée St Vivant. Tight and still a bit tough but there is lots here – in a high toned register. Very direct attack, very refreshing and frank. Not as flattering as, say, La Tâche. Wait and wait for this. (JR)

Good deep red. Reticent aromas of plum, mocha and earth; currently in a shell and not showing the treble notes of La Tache. Then silky and thick but very closed, even inscrutable. Comes across as less sweet and less vibrant today than La Tache, but this is chewy, voluminous and quite powerful, with very good supporting acidity. Offers complex, soil-inflected flavors of tobacco, underbrush, damp soil and menthol, but less of the spicy high tones of La Tache. But the tannins here are even suaver, and the wine is at least as long. Give this and La Tache 12 to 15 years of aging.