La Tâche Grand Cru (Vosne-Romanée — DRC Monopole)

The name La Tâche — meaning 'task' or 'piece-work' in French, referencing the historical practice of cultivating a vineyard in exchange for a fixed payment — was first applied when the de Croonembourg family purchased the site from the Abbey of Saint-Vivant in 1631, simultaneously acquiring the vineyard then known as La Romanée (later Romanée-Conti). Following the French Revolution, La Tâche passed through several owners before General Louis Liger-Belair amassed control of the vineyard in 1815. By 1933, following the death of the Comtesse Liger-Belair in 1931, the Liger-Belair family was forced to auction its holdings; DRC acquired the La Tâche parcel at that sale. DRC already owned the adjacent Les Gaudichots from the Duvault-Blochet era, and after legal proceedings the two parcels were formally united into a single Grand Cru monopole when the AOC was created by decree on 11 September 1936.

• Name derives from 'faire une tâche' — the practice of cultivating a vineyard for a fixed payment, recorded from at least 1631
• In 1855, Dr. Jules Lavalle's classification placed La Tâche in the highest category, tête de cuvée, alongside Romanée-Conti
• DRC acquired the Liger-Belair parcel in 1933 and united it with Les Gaudichots; Grand Cru AOC ratified 11 September 1936
• Organic farming introduced from 1985; biodynamic practices progressively extended across the estate thereafter

La Tâche occupies the mid-slope of the Côte d'Or escarpment in Vosne-Romanée, situated south of Romanée-Conti and bordered to the north by La Grande Rue and to the east, south, and west largely by Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru vineyards. The vineyard extends from 250 to 310 metres in elevation and faces east, optimising morning sun exposure while benefiting from cooling afternoon conditions. Soils vary meaningfully across the site: the upper sections are dominated by thin, pebbly limestone that drains freely, while the lower slopes retain a higher proportion of clay. This natural gradient of terroir allows DRC to balance concentration and freshness across vintages, blending fruit from different elevations to achieve the wine's characteristic depth and structure.

• Elevation ranges from 250 to 310 metres above sea level on an east-facing mid-slope in Vosne-Romanée
• Upper slopes: thin pebbly limestone soils with excellent drainage; lower slopes: higher clay content for water retention
• Bordered north by La Grande Rue Grand Cru; east, south, and west by Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru vineyards
• Continental climate with warm summers and cool autumn nights; harvest typically in late September

La Tâche is produced exclusively from Pinot Noir, with vines averaging over 40 years of age. DRC uses heritage cuttings propagated from its own vineyards, preserving genetic integrity across replanting cycles. In the cellar, winemaking under chef de cave Alexandre Bernier emphasises minimal intervention: fermentation takes place in wooden vats using only native yeasts, with whole-cluster inclusion varying between 50% in more challenging vintages and 100% in ideal conditions. Élevage lasts approximately 16 to 18 months in 100% new French oak barrels — unusual for Burgundy — after which wines are bottled unfiltered and unfined. The estate's yields, averaging around 25 hl/ha across all vineyards, sit well below the Grand Cru permitted maximum of 35 hl/ha.

• 100% Pinot Noir from vines averaging 40+ years, propagated from estate heritage cuttings
• Whole-cluster fermentation: 50–100% depending on vintage character, using only native yeasts
• Élevage of approximately 16–18 months in 100% new French oak; wines bottled unfiltered and unfined
• DRC's estate-wide average yield of ~25 hl/ha sits well below the Grand Cru AOC maximum of 35 hl/ha

Domaine de la Romanée-Conti is co-owned by the de Villaine and Leroy/Roch families, with the estate in its modern form dating to Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet's purchase of Romanée-Conti in 1869. Today the Domaine is co-directed by Bertrand de Villaine and Perrine Fenal, following Aubert de Villaine's retirement in 2022 after more than 50 years at the helm. DRC holds approximately 25 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards in total, with La Tâche its largest single holding at 6.06 hectares. As a monopole, La Tâche is owned in its entirety by DRC, ensuring absolute control over viticulture, harvest decisions, and winemaking across all 6.06 hectares. La Tâche is one of six Grand Crus within the Vosne-Romanée commune, which also includes Romanée-Conti, Richebourg, Romanée-Saint-Vivant, La Grande Rue, and La Romanée.

• DRC is co-owned by the de Villaine and Leroy/Roch families; co-directed today by Bertrand de Villaine and Perrine Fenal
• Monopole status means 100% DRC ownership of all 6.06 ha; no other producer holds any parcel within the AOC
• La Tâche Grand Cru AOC minimum alcohol: 11.5%; maximum permitted yield: 35 hl/ha
• One of six Grand Crus in the Vosne-Romanée commune, alongside Romanée-Conti, Richebourg, Romanée-Saint-Vivant, La Grande Rue, and La Romanée

Young La Tâche is typically described as flamboyant and approachable relative to Romanée-Conti, displaying vivid aromatics of dark berries, violet, rose petal, exotic spice, and coniferous forest floor, underscored by fine-grained tannins and vibrant acidity. With time in bottle, the wine gains a layered tertiary complexity: pressed rose, autumn leaves, black truffle, graphite, and leather emerge alongside evolving secondary fruit. La Tâche is widely regarded as quieter and more focused than Richebourg, and more accessible in its youth than Romanée-Conti itself, yet fully capable of developing over 20 to 30 or more years from outstanding vintages. Vintage variation is clearly expressed, as DRC's low yields and precise selection allow the wine's terroir to speak with transparency across different growing seasons.

• Primary (young): dark berries, violet, rose petal, exotic spice, coniferous forest floor, fine-grained tannins
• Secondary (5–15 years): dried flowers, plum skin, leather, mineral-driven precision, evolving complexity
• Tertiary (15+ years): pressed rose, black truffle, graphite, autumn leaves, leather; remarkable length
• Considered more accessible in youth than Romanée-Conti, yet equally built for multi-decade cellaring

With approximately 20,000 bottles produced annually, La Tâche is the largest-volume wine in the DRC portfolio and, as enthusiasts note, sometimes described as the 'best value' within the estate — a remark that underscores just how stratospheric DRC pricing is. The wine commands investment-grade prices at auction, with demand consistently outpacing supply. DRC does not participate in en primeur sales; allocations are released in bottle through a tightly controlled network of importers and merchants globally, with the US market handled by Wilson Daniels. Legendary vintages cited by collectors include 1945, 1959, 1971, 1978, 1985, 1990, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2019. La Tâche's consistent quality across all vintages, combined with DRC's strict selection, makes it one of the most reliably excellent and sought-after wines on the secondary market.

• Annual production of approximately 20,000 bottles, making it the largest single cuvée in the DRC portfolio
• No en primeur sales; allocations released in bottle through a tightly controlled global importer network
• Collector benchmark vintages include 1971, 1978, 1985, 1990, 1999, 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2019
• At a 2020 Sotheby's London auction, 12 bottles of La Tâche 1988 sold for approximately $63,900