Tasting the Domaine de la Romanee Conti La Tache 1961

If you were to ask a true lover of the great wines of this world which wine he would like to drink at least one day if he had enough money, the names of Petrus and Domaine de la Romanee Conti would quickly come up. Wines that used to be somewhat affordable, but nowadays cost 3,000 euros or more per bottle. Then you have to think very hard to open one.

And then, while taking stock of a large and old wine cellar, in addition to treasures such as a Lafite Rothschild 1887 and a Mouton Rothschild 1918, we suddenly came across a bottle that made all mouths drop open: a double magnum La Tache 1961. An iconic wine from an iconic year in large format. Value: easily a 40,000 euros.

But that's if the bottle is in good condition. Opening the case, the bottle was found to have leaked due to the faulty cork. An unsellable wine and one with a value that is difficult to determine, given the risk of undrinkability. After all, how long had this leakage been going on? Besides, the colour was almost imperceptible, so we could not check if the wine had become orange or brown. And so we decided to drink this wine together. And that turned out to be the ultimate experience.

Burgundy vintage 1961

A legendary year in Bordeaux. But it is then often assumed that the same applies to France's other wine regions, such as Burgundy, for example. And that, of course, is not the case: Bordeaux has a maritime climate, Burgundy a continental climate to name just one of the factors that make a difference in this.

In Burgundy, the season 1961 started promisingly. A warm spring, vegetation started as early as May, earlier than usual. But then it all went less prosperous, mainly due to a poor summer. September, on the other hand, was again very good and warm, making for excellent harvesting conditions.

Yields were well below average, quality good to very good, especially given the moderate summer. All in all, much better than expected. Due to the low yields, prices were up to 50 per cent higher than those of vintage 1959, which, unlike 1961, was a legendary year.

Tasting the la Tache 1961

Uncorking the bottle was quite a challenge. The leakage had seriously weakened the cork but using a double corkscrew, we eventually managed to get the cork out quite completely. The cork read neatly 1961, the name had become illegible.

An initial ‘sniff’ was enough to be sure that the wine had survived the spill. We poured the wine with a group of 12 people, each pouring a small amount to keep a close eye on its development.

The wine was ‘massive’ but still very closed. Not everyone had the patience to wait to drink and those who waltzed the wine for a few minutes were rewarded. The aroma moved more and more towards fruit and spice and became fuller and rounder. The difference between the first sip and the second sip after a few minutes was immense. Whereas at the beginning the wine still contained a lot of subdued power and had a modest finish in terms of intensity, it now came out in all its glory. The finish was already long and consistent, though. And it would only get better, we knew. Decant then? We decided that patience with wine in the glass was the best and quickest route to success.

The wine reached its peak after 30+ minutes: rosehip, cherries and floral notes of roses. So sweet and soft with brilliant elegance. Around it spices, eucalyptus, earthy notes, truffle. The wine again ‘massive’ with a finish of more than a minute without any loss of quality. Perfectly balanced.

We were amazed by this wine. First, of course, that it still was in an excellent condition. But the superb quality surprised us, even though we had high expectations of a La Tache 1961 in large format. Again a proof that wine in large format age much better.

Rating BOW 9+.