Ric visits Domaine Roulot

Just further down the same road from Domaine Coche-Dury is the other superstar of Meursault, Domaine Roulot, often (and deservedly) mentioned in the same breath as Coche. Founded in 1830 by Guillaume Roulot, its modern history took off with Guy Roulot in the 1960s. Having married Genevieve Coche, which added some prized parcels of vines to the domaine, Guy also began the process of vinifying and bottling each individual lieu-dit separately, which allowed him to understand and bring out the character of each micro-terroir. Following his untimely death in 1982, the winemaking at the domaine was supervised by three caretaker vignerons – Jacques Seysses, Ted Lemon and Franck Grux – before Guy’s son Jean-Marc Roulot was ready to step up to the role in 1989. He has been in charge since and the holdings of the domaine has expanded to 15 hectares. Certified organic since 2015, Jean-Marc likes to bring out the acidity of healthy grapes by crushing first, before pressing. New oak is used sparingly, 20% for village and up to 30% for the crus. It was a pity that Jean-Marc was not available to meet us when we visited the domaine in the late afternoon of 31 October 2018. Nevertheless, the line-up we tasted revealed very well the superb style of Roulot: wines of compelling acidity and intensity coupled with razor-sharp precision and detail without being imposing. If one is to drink them alongside Coche-Dury, I would say the latter is a little more structured, masculine and plump while Roulot possesses a very special delicate intensity and deftness on the palate. The best is to drink a wine of the same vintage from both these domaines side-by-side over a meal, which was what we did during our trip. Buy what you can though, chances are, they are difficult to come by.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault. Very pale. Effusive in white citrus with delicate minerality. Fullish, showing excellent inner detail, with crisp acidity and very fine intensity. Very clean and precise, finishing with a stinging mouthfeel. Refreshing. Very fine.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Vireuils. Lightly luminous. Good lift of white floral tone, dense lemon and citrus. Full-bodied, displaying clean crisp acidity and definition with more intensity than the preceding village Meursault, finishing on a distinct minerally tone with gentle persistence. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Meix Chavaux. More depth and layering on the nose where delicate floral tones and white citrus dominate. Excellent in concentration and power, displaying razor-sharp precision and definition with a deeper inner note of grassy elements. Finished with excellent linearity. Superb.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Luchets. Great lift of crystalline and ferrous minerals amidst white floral tones. Superb presence and density on the palate. Rounder and more fleshy, layered with sublime acidity, very subtly nuanced, finishing with lovely gentle persistence. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Tesson Clos du Mon Plaisir. Rounded bouquet of lovely floral and minerally tones permeate throughout. Highly integral. Layered with great concentration of fruit that exuded sharp precision and definition with exquisite intensity and depth. Outstanding.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Charmes-Dessous 1er. Even richer on the nose, more dense in fruit and sublime minerality. Superbly layered, rounded with exquisite fullness and intensity. Highly expressive yet subtle in its detailed nuances, culminating in a superb finish of great linearity and glowing persistence with a certain stoniness and white peppery tones, producing superb mouthfeel. Absolutely on song. Outstanding.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Clos des Boucheres 1er. Distinct floral boquet. Rather full. More lean in minerality on the palate, displaying subtle white citrus with sharp definition and crisp cutting acidity. Very clean in feel, tightly coiled with fabulous intensity, showing early complexity with a bit of grassy elements at its finish. Excellent.

2017 Domaine Roulot Meursault Perrieres-Dessous 1er. Full rounded bouquet of creamy minerality with dense floral tones that led to a palate of great concentration and layering, very well-balanced against the exquisite intensity and acidity, imparting a wonderful mouthfeel of delicate intensity amidst subtle grassy elements and green fruits. Outstanding.

2011 Domaine Roulot Meursault Tillets. Tasted blind. Deep layers of lovely fruit on the nose while the palate is superbly layered with a glorious depth of raw nutmeg, savoury tones and sweet white fruits, displaying exquisite intensity and concentration amidst subtle chalky tones, finishing with superb early complexity. Outstanding.

Sunset over Meursault