Echézeaux, Domaine de la Romanée Conti 2005

The soaring nose of spicy cassis, black cherry and violets this displayed from cask has now become very reserved and brooding, merging into rich, full and utterly delicious flavors that possess a beguiling texture and unusually fine tannins compared to what I typically see with the Ech. This is a big wine by any measure with excellent mid-palate density and superb length. Really good stuff and as the "value" play in the DRC line-up, one to strongly consider because it surpasses its normal quality level by more than a fair margin in 2005. Drink: 2020+

The 2005 Echezeaux delivers ravishingly sweet, high-toned aromas of black raspberry, maraschino, marzipan, marmalade and iodine. It saturates the palate with sweet, ripe fruit and inner-mouth perfume, while introducing layers of fresh meat and shrimp-shell minerality. The texture is amazingly creamy and polished, and the long, refined finish adds an alluring hint of mocha. Superb saturation of ultra-ripe fruit but with freshness; remarkable concentration yet elegance, lift, indeed near weightlessness: this is 2005 at its best. The temptation to drink this in its early years will, I suspect, be irresistible ... let's hope so anyway. It would be a shame for this beauty to be locked away as a collectible, even if it is capable of long-aging.

Mid blueish crimson with quite a pale rim. Light nose initially with a hint of undergrowth but lots of ripe sweetness underneath. Jewel bright, so bright, fruit - not that intense - but very winning, and it opened up in the glass becoming more intense and super bright cherry fruity with the merest hint of espresso. Marked acidity on the palate is the first impression and then some oak tannin still. Very, very youthful - much more introspective than I remember the 2004s at this stage. Even severe. You take this on faith at this stage because the fruit weight is not sufficient to distract from all the infant aspects of acid and tannin. Drink 2014-2025.Date tasted 19th Feb 08.