Description
Domaine Arlaud, Grand Cru “Clos de la Roche”
Fact: Arlaud’s Grand Crus yield monstrous payoffs for collectors with the mental fortitude to bury them deep in a cellar for years on end. So why, then, are we offering their young and explosive 2020 “Clos de la Roche” today if it shouldn’t yet be opened? Because tomorrow’s availability is not guaranteed. For the past five years, we’ve staggered back in reverential awe as these cuvées have climbed the imposing, sacrosanct ranks of biodynamic Grand Cru Burgundy, refusing to let up until entering five-star territory. Put another way, the annals of elite Pinot Noir will be heavily marked with Domaine Arlaud!
One of our colleagues (who sells the legendary likes of Comtes Lafon, Dujac, and DRC to top collectors) had the great fortune of meeting and barrel-tasting with biodynamic mastermind Cyprien Arlaud earlier in the year. He called the experience “transformative,” and has eagerly echoed the exact thoughts I type now—these rare Grand Crus are highly covetable, extremely age-worthy Pinot Noirs of total purity and gobsmacking majesty. Since we can only offer a maximum of three bottles, maybe its precious scarcity will convince you to cellar them longer than usual. Should you need further convincing, I’ll leave you with this: Of the few US retailers with access to Arlaud’s Clos de la Roche, we’re currently offering the lowest price—by a substantial margin.
BONUS: Arlaud’s infinitely rare Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru, sourced from a literal half-acre sliver of vines, is also available here. A strict two-bottle maximum must be applied.
Domaine Arlaud began with the WWII-era marriage of Joseph Arlaud to Renée Amiot, whose family owned several prime Burgundy vineyards, including pieces of the Clos St. Denis and Bonnes Mares Grand Crus. Joseph’s son Hervé followed, expanding the domaine’s holdings further, then in 1997 it was Hervé’s son Cyprien’s turn to run the show. Perhaps the hallmark achievement of Cyprien’s tenure has been his conversion to biodynamic farming—fully certified in 2014, and the first in his home village of Morey-Saint-Denis. His cherished sites are plowed by horse, and as one of Arlaud’s importers has noted, Cyprien’s sister, Bertille, has become “one of the most important horse-ploughers in France.” How’s that for a credential?!
There is a HOFer list of Burgundy domaines that own a stand of vines in Clos de la Roche, with Dujac topping the price scale at $1,000+. Arlaud’s single hectare of 30-40-year-old vines is located in the highest-elevated lieu-dit of “Les Mochamps,” and thanks to meticulous biodynamic farming and a gentle touch in the cellar, Arlaud’s bottling has become one of the greatest forces to be reckoned with. His fruit is vinified naturally and separately with a small portion of whole clusters left intact. The resulting wine then ages in French barrels, typically no more than 30% new, and is bottled unfined and unfiltered in accordance with the lunar calendar.
Cyprien’s approach in the cellar is described as “non-interventionist,” which can result in some reductive, high-strung wines in their youth. Like most young, expertly crafted Grand Crus, today’s 2020 Clos de la Roche is not meant for enjoyment right now: its perfume, purity, and gorgeously stitched structure all point to one thing: This is destined for greatness. I hesitate to further describe this wine because a genuine collector won’t dare touch this masterpiece in progress until it’s evolved more, at least three years. Still, 2030-2035 is when the true magic will begin revealing itself. Cyprien recently blinded my colleague on a 2010 vintage, and I was told as incredible as it was, it still needed another decade before reaching its zenith—now that’s a bonafide collectible!
