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La Tâche, Domaine de la Romanée Conti 1999

Tasting Notes

Everything that I saw from cask made it into bottle intact and words remain inadequate to describe just how good this wine is as the '99 is a classic La Tâche in every respect with its incredibly pure, marvelously intense oriental spice box nose that merges seamlessly into big, rich and enveloping flavors of hoisin and pure pinot extract of indescribable complexity and length. The big tannins are completely wrapped in velvet and the finish simply does not quit. This is destined to become one of the all-time great vintages of La Tâche and even at 98 points, it's clear that I was too conservative and thus I am raising my score accordingly. Moreover, among the many bottles that I have been blessed to have tried, I have never had a bottle that was anything less than sensational. However, note that the '99 LT is going to be a long-distance runner so a strategy of cellar and forget is strongly advised, at least for the next decade or so. Multiple, and consistent, notes.

99
Allen Meadows, Burghound.com (44), October 2011

The enormously backward, dense, concentrated 1999 La Tâche is a candidate for perfection in about 7-10 years. Very backward, with a deep ruby/purple color, it offers a tight but promising nose of root beer, spice, black cherries, violets, and a hint of blackberries. Full-bodied and loaded with tannin, but sweet and pure, this colossal wine needs a minimum of 5-8 years of cellaring. It should keep for 2-3 decades.

98
Robert Parker, Hedonists Gazette, August 2003

La Tache 1999 - The medium to dark ruby-coloured 1999 La Tache, has sweet, tangy raspberry, black currant, candied cherry, leather and spice aromas.This medium to full bodied wine is harmonious, refined, and powerful. It is expansive, magnificently delineated, and feminine, particularly for La Tache. Its flavor profile is crammed with and assortment of super ripe red and black fruit laced with vanilla beans. It has loads of sweet tannin that can be detected in its admirable finish.
93 – 96+ points / issue 136

93/96
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (136), August 2001
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.