2012 - Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru Cros Parantoux, Emmanuel Rouget

There are four barrels of the 2012 Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru Cros Parantoux, the famous premier cru shared with Meo-Camuzet. It has a deeper and a relatively broody bouquet when compared to the Echezeaux, and here it refuses to open up. But one can detect real mineralite, a roiling intensity below. The palate is very harmonious, with a cashmere opening. The acidity is nicely judged and cuts through the swathe of rounded, corpulent red fruit. The finish is longer than the Echezeaux, with a spicy note loitering at the tip of the tongue. I first came across Emmanuel Rouget’s wines in the late 1990s, a very respected name, albeit one that lay under the long shadow of the late great Henri Jayer. How could his nephew possibly follow in his footsteps? The general consensus was that Emmanuel’s wines could be great, but they lacked that Jayer “magic.” Speculation as to how much Uncle Jayer remained involved in the winemaking following his official retirement in 1996 and until his passing in 2006 fostered the notion it was Henri who kept one hand on the tiller. Personally, like many others, I found Emmanuel Rouget’s wines very good and occasionally brilliant, but more erratic and missing the flair that distinguished Jayer’s wines of the 1980s and 1990s. I first visited the domaine in the picturesque town of Gilly in Flagey-Echezeux back in 2006. The reclusive Emmanuel had a reputation of being difficult at times, though I found him amiable, the perfect gentleman, in fact. Returning in January 2013, the first thing that I noticed was I would be received not by Emmanuel, but his 22-year old son Guillaume. Did this constitute a changing of the guard? Guillaume’s first vintage was in 2009, his brother Nicolas joining one year later. I conjectured how much input they have had upon the wines vis-a-vis their father? As we descended into the cellar, Guillaume seemed wary and laconic, but he soon eased up as we commenced tasting through their 2012s from barrel, the wines due for rackin

Bright, dark red. Distinctly blacker and wilder on the nose than the Echézeaux, with dark berry and floral aromas complicated by notes of sous-bois, coffee, mocha and menthol. Rather tight, even musclebound, today but boasts terrific energy to its blackberry, menthol and violet flavors. Finishes adamantly dry, broad and soil-inflected, with considerable power and outstanding length. Like the Echézeaux, this is painfully backward today. The fruit was picked at 11.8% and chaptalized to 13.2%.