Échezeaux 2001 from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is a red Grand Cru of Pinot Noir from Flagey-Échezeaux, in the Côte de Nuits. Among the estate's reds, Échezeaux is the big one by volume after La Tâche, and the 2001 vintage required significant effort to achieve this. Pruning in March was severe, and debudding harsher than usual, because the crop looked set to be large. Budbreak began in early May, which was a full 15 days later than the very early start in 2000. The weather was favorable in May, but June was cold and damp, with flowering amid cool conditions. Heavy rains around the 14th of July caused some botrytis infection. Then August saw a heatwave with temperatures reaching 38°C for four consecutive days; the storm that followed struck other sectors of the Côte without affecting the domaine's vineyards. Sunshine hours and accumulated heat units were recorded at levels similar to those of 1995. September was cool, and the harvest in the Côte de Nuits region continued into early October. Across the Côte d'Or region, the potential alcohol content of the Pinot Noir was recorded at around 12%.
Robert Parker (89)
Mouth-watering aromas of blackberries and spices can be found in the nose of the ruby-colored 2001 Grands-Echezeaux. A seductive, medium-bodied, satin-textured wine, it coats the taster’s palate with loads of dark fruits. This is a well-endowed, pure effort with a long, flavorful finish. Drink it over the next 8-10 years.
Jancis Robinson (16.5)
ale ruby. Warm sweet nose. Lightly autumnal. Comforting rather than super pure. Lots of acidity. Rather severe still. Demanding. Something a little cinnamon about the spice here. Very long. May well open out eventually. Need lots more time. Pretty tough on the end. Quite severe overall. Of all these wines, this seems the one most marked by the tricky character of the vintage rather than by the climat.
Vinous (92)
The 2001 Échézeaux is wonderfully lifted and delicate, with distinct elements of dried rose petal and sweet spices that are woven throughout. I don’t see the 2001 making very old bones, but it is quite expressive today.
Burghound (92)
Knockout sexy black fruit aromas trimmed in a deft touch of oak and distinct animale notes with expressive, full, pure, sweet and quite powerful flavors and a long, persistent, mouth coating finish. The amount of sève is impressive as is the sheer spiciness and this is a good deal more refined than it usually is. A great vintage for this wine.
Jasper Morris (95)
From Les Poulaillères. I still do not feel that I have fully understood this vintage, but the wine was excellent. The colour demonstrated a depth rarely found in the other examples and there was an impressive weight of fruit on the nose without losing any sense of balance or of plate. This was the most mouth-filling example of Echezeaux in the tasting and clearly now happily entering its window if drinkability. It held up very well in the glass too. Barely short of a 5th star. Tasted Dec 2018.
BOW (8+)
