Domaine de la Romanée-Conti - La Tâche - Grand Cru

The 2014 La Tâche Grand Cru was picked on 17, 18 and 20 September at 32 hectoliters per hectare, bottled between 1 and 25 April 2016. It has a quite startling bouquet: dark berry fruit, bay leaf, hints of jasmine tea and autumn leaves. It delivers multi-faceted aromatics, a mercurial bouquet, brown spices emerging with continued aeration in the glass. It is a tad more forward than I expected. The palate is medium-bodied with great structure and fine grip. This is a slightly more masculine La Tâche and replicating its performance in barrel, the fruit spectrum shimmies from red to black (incidentally, exactly as I observed when I tasted it in barrel). There is a lovely lift on the finish that leaves you with a piquant kiss on the cheek. This is wonderful. 1,929 cases produced.