Medium-plus cherry-red colour. The wide nose showcases well delineated soft red fruit and a little coffee too. High-toned fruit in the mouth that is both concentrated and bursts into life on the mid-palate. There is some astringency to the tannin but the combined sweetness of the fruit and the considerable spicy oak means that it’s not overpowering in the finish which also shows plenty of cream and just a touch of espresso. In quality terms this wine is quite close to the previous wine, just a little shorter and less precise – mainly due to the layer of sweet oak which I don’t find ‘additive’.
Echézeaux
Comments for this entry
2003 Romanée-Conti Echézeaux
Medium-plus colour. Bright, ebullient nose: at first it’s wide and fat, becoming sleeker with time. Eventually there is a dense core of slightly indistinct fruit overlayed with a minty tone. The instant impression in the mouth is from the texture of the tannins, they’re not the most cultured – plenty of rasp – followed by ripe, sweet fruit that ends with an interesting touch of sourness. There’s a long, intruiging finish that has a little saccharin about it. I’d have no concern over drinking this today as it’s a lovely wine, but vs other recent vintages it’s just a little more simple.