Aromas of wild berries, exotic spices, rose petals and toasty oak introduce the 2021 Romanée-St-Vivant Grand Cru, a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and concentrated wine that's concentrated but fine-boned, with lively acids and a penetrating finish.

Wafting from the glass with aromas of dark wild berries, rose petals, violets, sweet spices and hints of cracked pepper, the 2020 Romanée-St-Vivant Grand Cru is full-bodied, layered and intense, with a beautifully pure, vibrant core of strikingly concentrated fruit, concluding with a long, resonant finish. More tightly wound than the Grands-échézeaux, it will demand some patience.

The 2019 Romanée-St-Vivant Grand Cru wafts from the glass with breathtaking aromas of raspberries and strawberries mingled with bergamot, Indian spices, peonies and rose petals. Full-bodied, vibrant and perfumed, it's finer boned than the more muscular Grands-échézeaux, with a bright spine of acidity and beautifully refined tannins, concluding with a long, penetrating finish. Striking for its purity and elegance, my handwritten notes include the phrase "pure sensuality."

The 2017 Romanée-St-Vivant Grand Cru was also showing very well indeed, soaring from the glass with scents of cassis, violets, blood orange, cinnamon and espresso roast that are complemented by carnal nuances of smoked duck and musk. On the palate, it's full-bodied, multidimensional and enveloping, with terrific concentration, rich and powdery structuring tannins and a long, saline finish. This is a dramatic, head-turning Romanée-St-Vivant in the making, and it is showing even better in bottle than it did from barrel.

The 2016 Romanée-St-Vivant Grand Cru is super, bursting from the glass with a kaleidoscopic bouquet of potpourri, red berries, cassis, peony and rose petal. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, ample and fine-boned, with tangy acids, superb concentration and an ample chassis of powdery structuring tannins, concluding with a long, fragrant finish. This is a Romanée-St-Vivant that exemplifies the intensity without the weight that distinguishes the Domaine's best wines, and it equals the fabulous 2015 rendition.