The profile of the 2017 vintage shows a great level of elegance and freshness, compared to the 2016 which was more defined by structure and concentration. The 2017 Clos de Tart shows beautiful depth, with complex aromas which transition from red fruits to black as the wine aerates. Ethereal floral notes of violets and rose carry with the long palate of silky, delicate tannins. The wine is supported by the terroir’s signature frame of great precision, in line with the best years produced at the Domaine
98pts Vinous– 2017 vintage
The 2017 Clos de Tart Grand Cru was matured in around 80% new oak, the barrels toasted chauff blonde. Jacques Desvauges mentioned that the wine needed oxygen ingress during maturation that only new oak can give. I tasted the component parts (as usual) as well as the blend. This has a very detailed, delineated bouquet offering mainly black fruit mixed with sous-bois, tobacco, clove and bay leaf, the typicité of the appellation showing through nicely. It feels very succinct and yet so fresh. The palate is beautifully balanced on the entry with a killer line of acidity. Pure black cherry fruit is joined by bilberry, hints of black olive and a marine/oyster shell tincture that comes through quite strongly toward the persistent, saline finish, which fans out with confidence. This is a brilliant follow-up to the benchmark 2016 by Jacques Desvauges and his team.
96pts Decanter– 2017 vintage
Despite what has been written about high yields in the Côte de Nuits in 2017, Jacques de Vauges made less Clos de Tart than he did in 2016. Picked much earlier than it used to be when Sylvain Pitiot was in charge, this is a fine, focussed, nuanced wine that expresses the complexity of this monopole grand cru. With deftly integrated 60% whole bunches and 80% new wood, it’s elegant, floral and precise with chalky freshness.
95pts Wine Advocate– 2017 vintage
The 2017 Clos de Tart Grand Cru is a decided success, wafting from the glass with fragrant aromas of orange rind, raspberries, wild berries and peonies that are complemented by deeper-pitched nuances of grilled game, cinnamon and spicy soil tones. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, satiny and succulent, with an open, giving profile this year despite its excellent concentration and fleshy core, concluding with a tangy, saline finish. Tasting several barrels of the different components, which had been held back when the assemblage was made, was in a sense more revealing than trying the final blend, since the latter had been racked and sulfited. Once again, Jacques Desvauges used appreciable percentages of whole cluster and matured the wine in 80% new oak.
