Domaine Jean Grivot, Echezeaux Grand Cru 2009

The 2009 Echezeaux is pure silk. Black cherries, spices, licorice and tar are all woven together in a fabric of nearly indescribable elegance. All the elements fall into place as the Echezeaux captivates both the intellectual and hedonistic senses. This is a wine that impresses for its understated elegance. Readers won’t fine the drive of the Clos de Vougeot or the structure of the Richebourg. Instead, the Echezeaux possesses stunning textural finesse and phenomenal balance. Anticipated maturity: 2019-2039.

Good deep, bright red. Very reduced nose is currently blocking the wine's primary fruits. Fatter but initially less sweet than the Clos de Vouget, with a bit of leathery funk to its dark berry, earth and iodine flavors. Began quite unforthcoming if rather suave, but gained significantly in sweetness and thickness with aeration. This will need at least seven or eight years of bottle aging or a lot of time in a decanter. Grivot believes that the very dense cork he used to seal this wine is largely responsible for its reductive character.