2019 Georges Noellat - Grands Echezeaux (750ml)

Domaine Georges Noëllat is rooted in Vosne-Romanée through Georges Noëllat, nephew of Charles Noëllat, whose once-legendary holdings were eventually divided to help form Domaines Jean-Jacques Confuron and Hudelot-Noëllat, along with much of Domaine Leroy. The estate passed to Georges' daughter Maria-Thérèse and her husband, Champagne grower Jacques Cheurlin, before landing with their grandson Maxime Cheurlin in 2010, when he was just twenty years old. Trained at the Lycée Viticole in Beaune with stages at Domaine Emmanuel Rouget and Domaine Gros Frère et Sœur, Maxime now farms 5.5 hectares of prized, often pre-World War II vines across Vosne-Romanée and northern Nuits-Saint-Georges.

Grands Échézeaux is one of the domaine's most coveted holdings, and in 2019 Maxime broke from past practice by including whole clusters in this cuvée for the first time, settling on 25 percent to add freshness and complexity. Grapes are hand-harvested and cool macerated before fermentation with indigenous yeasts, with Maxime favoring gentle infusion over forceful extraction. This tiny production, just five barrels, matured entirely in new oak.

The wine offers blackberry fruit layered with undergrowth, tobacco, and crushed limestone. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, polished tannins, a cooling hint of peppermint beneath the dark fruit, and touches of white pepper and sage that carry through a broad, expansive finish.