Domaine de la Romanée-Conti: why DRC is so famous

Say “DRC” to a sommelier and watch their face. Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is the Burgundy estate whose name has become shorthand for rare, sought-after wine. Most of us will taste it rarely, if ever. That is part of the story, but only part.

The short answer: DRC owns two Grand Cru vineyards outright, Romanée-Conti and La Tâche, and makes wine only from Grand Crus, nine in all. The vineyard's story can be traced back to the monks of Saint-Vivant in the Middle Ages, the same two families have owned the domaine together since 1942, and the quantities are tiny compared with worldwide demand.

DRC in one minute

• Where: Vosne-Romanée, in the Côte de Nuits, the northern half of Burgundy's Côte d'Or.
• What: red wines from Pinot Noir, plus two whites from Chardonnay: Montrachet and Corton-Charlemagne.
• Only Grand Crus: nine of them, the top level of Burgundy's classification.
• Two monopoles: Romanée-Conti and La Tâche belong to DRC alone. In Burgundy, where most vineyards are split between many owners, that is rare.
• Owners: the de Villaine family (descendants of Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet) and the Leroy family, half each.
• Run by: two co-managers, Perrine Fenal (since 2019) and Bertrand de Villaine (since 2021, after his uncle Aubert de Villaine).

The nine Grand Crus

The history in a few dates

• Around 900: the priory of Saint-Vivant is founded near Vosne. In 1131 the Duke of Burgundy gives it the land where the future vineyard lies.
• 1651: the first written mention of the name “Romanée”.
• 1760: Louis-François de Bourbon, Prince de Conti, buys La Romanée, paying, the domaine says, more than ten times the price of the Clos de Bèze in Gevrey. He keeps the wine for his own table.
• 1794: after the Revolution the name “Romanée-Conty” appears in the records, and the vineyard is sold off as national property.
• 1869: Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet, a grower and merchant from Santenay who already owned Richebourg and Échezeaux vines, buys Romanée-Conti at the age of 79.
• 1942: the domaine becomes a company, and Henri Leroy buys half of it. The de Villaine and Leroy families have shared it ever since.
• 1974: Lalou Bize-Leroy and Aubert de Villaine become co-managers.
• 2015: the Climats of Burgundy join UNESCO's World Heritage List. Aubert de Villaine chaired the association behind the bid.

So why is it so famous?

• The land. Grand Crus are, in the domaine's own words, barely 1% of Burgundy's vineyard area. DRC makes nothing else.
• The monopoles. Owning a whole Grand Cru means one producer's view of that place, every year, with no comparison bottle from a neighbour.
• Continuity. The same families since 1942, and a domaine that talks about patience, detail and humility rather than fashion.
• Farming. The vines are farmed biodynamically: DRC is a member of Biodyvin, whose members farm their whole estate biodynamically or are converting to it.
• Scarcity. Small vineyards, worldwide demand and wines sold through a few official distributors. Prices sit far above even the premium tier.
• The story. Monks, a prince, a revolution and two families. A sommelier sells the feeling, and few wines carry this much of it.

What the wines are like

Expect Pinot Noir of perfume and finesse rather than power, made to age for many years. The domaine's own tasting notes keep returning to rose petal and to “the classic liquorice notes of La Tâche”. Young, they can seem closed and severe; with time they open. If you are lucky enough to be served one, let it breathe and taste it slowly. For why Pinot Noir is so sensitive to place, see why Pinot Noir is a diva.

Buying DRC: a warning about fakes

The domaine itself warns that counterfeit Romanée-Conti, including recent vintages, has been seized by police in several European countries. Its advice: unless you are completely sure where a bottle has been, buy only through its official distributors and the merchants they select. That is also the only way to know the bottle was stored well.

To taste the village without the price, try a Vosne-Romanée village wine from a good grower, or Domaine de Villaine in Bouzeron, the de Villaine family's estate in the Côte Chalonnaise, known for Aligoté. For the bigger picture, read my Burgundy study guide and the monks who mapped Burgundy.

How to say it

• Romanée-Conti: roh-mah-NAY kon-TEE.
• Échezeaux: ay-sheh-ZOH.
• Vosne-Romanée: vohn roh-mah-NAY.

Questions people ask