Quantity selected exceeds current stock
Domaine Armand Rousseau ranks with Romanée-Conti, Leflaive, Jacques Prieur, and a small handful of names that are the stuff of Burgundy legend. These domaines produce impeccable quality wines from vintage to vintage, and consistently place Burgundy at the top of the wine world.
Each of the domaine’s prestigious holdings are in Gevrey Chambertin, with the exception of Grand Cru Clos de la Roche in Morey-St. Denis. The domaine has 8 hectares of Grand Crus, including in Chambertin and in Clos de Bèze. Rousseau also owns acreage in the famed Premier Cru Clos St. Jacques, and the monopole, Grand Cru Clos des Ruchottes.
Director and heir to the domaine, Cyrielle Rousseau, remarks on the stylistic differences of the Grand Cru sites, "Charmes is supposed to be more feminine and elegant than Mazy-Chambertin, which is often more structured. Chambertin is strong and firm, while Clos de Bèze is more delicate and spicy. Each one of the grand crus is so different." Moreover the wines from Gevrey are generally fruitier and spicier than those from Morey Stain-Denis which are quite mineral, tannic and monolithic in comparison.
Regarding winemaking, simplicity is key. For all wines around 90% of the grapes are destemmed. All the vine fruit is placed in open stainless steel tanks, where it is fermented for 18 to 20 days. During fermentation between 31-34 degrees, the juice is gently and continuously pumped over with regular treading to release colour and tannins. After fermentation, the wines are delicately pressed in a pneumatic press and are allowed to settle for 24 hours. Finally, the winemaker transfers the wine to oak barrels. Here, malolactic fermentation takes place naturally. The wine is aged for 18 months in before bottling. Every Armand Rousseau wine is released two years after bottling.
