2012 Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes
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Tasting Notes
Interestingly this is even spicier with its own very broad array of spice elements that seemingly change with each whiff of the markedly ripe nose. The ripeness carries over to the dense, serious and overtly powerful big-bodied and imposingly scaled flavors that also possess seemingly unlimited reserves of palate coating dry extract that impart a velvety texture but also buffer the very firm tannins on the massively persistent finish. This is a big wine even by the outsized standards of a great Clos de la Roche yet the balance is faultless. This should be great in time. www.burghound.com
Critic Scores
Average Score
Allen Meadows, Burghound
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
On average, 60-year-old vines. Very sumptuous. Extremely ripe and voluptuous. I am not given to female parallels but Sophia Loren popped into my head when I tasted this wine. Full on, fully developed and all washes over you. No teenage tantrums here! Great balance in the mouth and it feels so confident that you could surely drink it relatively soon if you had no self control. A hedonist's delight. www.jancisrobinson.com
The 2012 Clos de la Roche Cuvee Vieilles Vignes has an entrancing bouquet with scents of boysenberry jam, briary, dark plum and raspberry preserve. It is very intense and generous. The palate regains a sense of order after the explosive aromatics with firm tannins, intense black fruit laced with white pepper and a touch of balsamic, leading to a very focus, quite grippy finish with great persistency. This is an outstanding grand cru but perhaps it will be pipped by Clos Saint Denis this year? Dec 2013, www.robertparker.com
About the producer
Domaine Ponsot is one of the most well-known estates in the Côte de Nuits, famed for owning three of the original four hectares of the Clos de la Roche Grand Cru. The legendary domaine also produces another nine Grand Cru cuvées.