1990 Romanee Conti

Ethereal is the word here. It is weightless and endless on both the nose and palate. Lovely dark garnet with a ruby hue. The aromas show pure strawberry, rose petal, candied oranges and lavender. I could go on and on. It’s full-bodied with very fine tannins and a wonderful and energetic finish. Surreal in many ways. A benchmark. Drink or hold.

The 1990 Romanée-Conti Grand Cru has a seductive and very sensual bouquet that for the first 30 minutes shades the 1991. It was picked on September 22 at 32hl/ha. Dark berry fruit, and hints of fresh fig and raisin permeate the luscious red fruit, later leather and sage joining the fray. There is warmth on this nose - it seems to envelop the senses. The palate is full-bodied for Romanée-Conti, supple and sumptuous with plush tannin and a velvety texture. There are layers of red fruit here, touches of kirsch and all spice, yet it does not achieve the same precision as the 1991 or 1993 and like the 1996, does not blossom in the glass and whisk you to a higher level. It is undoubtedly a gorgeous wine, the most hedonistic and exotic Romanée-Conti that I have tasted. But is that what you look for in this wine? Tasted at the Romanée-Conti dinner at the Connaught Hotel.

Another wine with extraordinary aromatic presence, the 1990 Romanée-Conti is just beginning to enter the peak of its maturity and also quite feminine in its personality. As it often is, the Romanée-Conti is elusive and, at times, fleeting. The 1990 constantly changes in the glass, inviting a second taste, and then a third. It’s hard to see the 1990 improving much from here, but it is gorgeous today.