TN: 2017 Rousseau

I was lucky enough to attend a Wildman tasting which of course, included Domaine Rousseau.

2017 Rousseau Clos du Chateau
I was excited that Cyrielle was pouring this as I wanted to try this wine. Bouquet of pure, red fruit - while not at the level of other wines in Rousseau’s portfolio, it’s still a nice wine that seems to be drinking well young.

2017 Rousseau Charmes-Chambertin
Dark cherries with a touch of smoky oak and earth; fine tannins on the finish. You can tell there is quite some energy that hopefully will develop as the wine ages.

2017 Rousseau Clos des Ruchottes
Sweet blackberries and wet earth, quite pretty on the nose - spices and roses. Good acidity, fine tannins, and a long finish. I kept smelling the glass afterwards and the aromas kept developing. Very nice. Wish I could compare this to the CSJ.

2017 Rousseau Chambertin-Clos de Bèze
I believe I heard Cyrielle saying the Beze is the “Queen of Gevrey” - perhaps making a reference to the counterpart Chambertin as many refer to that as the “King”. Anyways, Queen or not, this was one hell of a wine - spices, spices, and more spices. Bouquet of crushed rocks, dark fruit laced with spices and meaty notes, toasted oak. Lots of depth and energy on the palate; the finish just goes on forever.

When asked, Cyrielle said she sees 2017 as a blend of 2012 and 2013. She also mentioned 2018 as quite a hot growing season with strong yields, and believes there will be some special wines.

We had the '17 Rousseau Beze and Chambertin out of cask last year - simply amazing wines.

Sounds great…as always.

Is this the first vintage made entirely by Cyrielle?

Fred, I didn’t ask. Their new website puts a lot of emphasis on Cryielle, but not sure if 2016 or 2017 was her first vintage. I would assume that even if she was the primary wine maker, that Eric would be in the back guiding her (much like Jacque did in the early years of Dujac). Who knows, maybe someone here with more inside intel can comment.