The 2007 La Tache amply illustrates why this monopole is the darling among most of those lucky enough to regularly taste or collect the wines of the Domaine de La Romanee-Conti. Hints of mocha, vanilla, maraschino, and almond paste lend a confectionary note to generously rich cassis and raspberry, while Latakia tobacco, peat, clove, black pepper, star anise, and cumin contribute commune-typical Vosne-Romanee personality in spades. The high-toned, sweet themes continue inner mouth, with intimation of heliotrope, rowan, and lily perfume, while the wine’s smoky, spicy elements seem to descend into a low-register undertone of roasted red meats and forest floor. As this opens to the air, a subtly sweet-saline suggestion of lobster shell reduction adds richness and succulence. Strikingly creamy in feel, this La Tache nevertheless possessed a fresh berry edge that helps convey vibrancy to a finish that practically glows in your mouth, offering another of those Burgundian paradoxes of light and dark. Here, de Villaine’s case for long-term potential is easily made, and I expect this will richly reward at least 15-20 years of attention. Domaine de La Romanee-Conti director Aubert de Villaine perceives both the estate’s 2008 and 2007 collections as vins de garde, and I can’t argue with that assessment, even though when I first tasted the 2007s – soon after they had come out of malo – I harbored reservations, wondering whether to interpret de Villaine’s description of them as “ethereal” to read “ephemeral.” He says holding back the usual 5% share of production for the Domaine’s own cellar was difficult in the greatly reduced 2008 vintage, and that he is already regretting not having arranged to bottle a larger share in magnum. He still had time when I visited in April to reconsider the bottle format for three appellations, which were the only ones I was able to taste, since De Villaine is loathe to show wines in the first 9-12 months after bottling. (I’ll report on the full 2008 collection from bottle at a later date.) If the 2007s here were unusual for that vintage in the degree to which they gained stature in the course of elevage, such behavior was normal when it came to 2008, so that I was not surprised to hear de Villaine remark on a new-found degree of confidence in the stature of that collection. To an even greater degree than in most vintages, success in 2007 and 2008 came down to meticulousness at every stage; to quality of vine material; and to location, in all of which respects no estate in Burgundy has any advantage over the Domaine de La Romanee-Conti. Interestingly, the estate lingered no longer over the picking of their 2008s – from the first of the La Tache on September 27 to the last of the Echezeaux on October 6 – than they had over the 2007s, which were picked from September 1-11. The inclusion of stems was lowered to less than half in 2007, incidentally, but in 2008 was typically closer to three-quarters. Vendange entier is a technique not only time-honored and in continuous use at the Domaine de La Romanee-Conti (even when it fell out of favor at most Burgundy estates in the waning 20th century), but one which de Villaine and cellarmaster Bernard Noblet have subjected to repeated testing, so as to establish in any given vintage the right balance between 100% de-stemmed (“which lacks something by way of complexity,” says de Villaine) and 100% (“which can be too marked by the stems,” he continues). Importer: Wilson-Daniels, St. Helena, CA; tel. (707) 963-9661

A reserved yet equally kaleidoscopic nose of red, blue and violet aromas that is wonderfully broad, spicy, fresh, airy and layered leads to intensely floral, mineral infused and focused medium weight plus flavors that possess a strikingly attractive mouth feel and while in the context of the pantheon of great vintages of this storied wine, the '07 will be viewed as one of the lighter examples, the focus and balance here is nigh on perfect as the finish explodes into a hugely long finale, all underpinned by firm tannins and bright acidity. This may seem to be a lighter vintage but it will require at least 15 years of cellar time before this will be sufficiently civilized to drink with real pleasure and probably 25 before it's fully resolved. One other point bears mentioning: it's been a number of vintages since I last saw La Tâche best the Romanée-Conti but 2007 may be one of them.

The 2007 La Tâche Grand Cru is a vintage that I have not tasted since bottling. Now 11 years old, it shows extremely well in the context of the growing season. Almost delicate red fruit springs from the glass, wild strawberry and morello cherries mingling with undergrowth and tree-bark-like scents, becoming more floral with aeration and yet never powerful. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, almost lace-like tannins more redolent of Romanée-Conti. This displays wonderful precision and is lean in style for a La Tâche, but the sense of energy and athleticism is completely endearing. Tasted in November 2018 at the Roumier Musigny dinner at Épure in Hong Kong.

Good medium red. Vibrant, perfumed aromas of sappy red berries and spices. Densely packed but light on its feet, with terrific energy to the highly nuanced flavors of raspberry, spices, iron and flint. Atypically sweet for young La Tache but with the cut and saline minerality to support it. A classic example of the vintage in the way it dusts the palate with sappy, ethereal flavor and lovely lingering perfume.

The 2007 La Tâche Grand Cru is fully mature, offering up aromas of red berries, potpourri and spices mingled with hints of forest floor and new oak. Medium-bodied, with lively acids, melted tannins and an open, comparatively evolved core, my sense is that it's at its best today and over the next handful of years.

Aromas tomato leaf, damp loam and tree bark stand out above a delicate red currant and pomegranate character. The very youthful, medium bodied palate offers medium-firm, tight-knit tannins and taut fruit with crisp acidity and a long earthy finish. This is clearly a very young wine that needs time to express what it can offer.