FLOAT 100 · Wine · No. 82
Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Echezeaux Grand Cru 2018
It is the wine people call the 'entry level' of the most famous estate in Burgundy, and in the hot, early 2018 vintage it still cost more than $3,000 a bottle.
- Maker
- Domaine de la Romanee-Conti
- By price in wine
- 22 of 100
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Create a free account- Producer
- Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, Vosne-Romanee, Burgundy
- Vineyard
- Echezeaux Grand Cru, in the commune of Flagey-Echezeaux
- Domaine's holding
- 4.67 hectares, in the Les Poulailleres section north of Grands Echezeaux
- Whole vineyard
- 34.79 hectares, shared by about 80 owners in the early 2000s
- Grape
- Pinot Noir
- Typical production
- About 16,000 bottles a year (about 1,340 cases by another count); the 2018 figure is not published in the sources found
- Vintage
- 2018; the domaine began picking on August 31
- Critic scores
- Jeb Dunnuck 96, Decanter 95, Burghound 94, Wine Advocate 94, Vinous 94
- Grand cru appellation since
- 1937
A big, uneven grand cru and its best-known owner
Echezeaux is a grand cru vineyard in the Cote de Nuits, lying in the commune of Flagey-Echezeaux next to Vosne-Romanee. It borders Clos de Vougeot, Grands Echezeaux and the Vosne-Romanee premier cru Les Suchots. At 34.79 hectares in 2008, it is one of Burgundy's larger grands crus, and in that year it produced 1,240 hectoliters, some 165,000 bottles. Its grand cru appellation dates from 1937.
Size brings variety. In the early 2000s the vineyard was split among about 80 owners, and it has a reputation for uneven quality, with prices that follow the reputation of each producer. The best-known owner by far is the Domaine de la Romanee-Conti.
The domaine holds 4.67 hectares of Echezeaux, in the Les Poulailleres section, north of Grands Echezeaux. The parcel came to the estate through Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet, who bought Romanee-Conti itself in 1869 and assembled the domaine around it. In an average year the domaine makes about 16,000 bottles of Echezeaux; another count puts average production at about 1,340 cases.
The most forward wine in the range
The domaine's U.S. importer describes Echezeaux as the most forward of the domaine's red wines, a wine that 'opens up sooner than the others' with a silky texture and a lighter touch than its grander siblings, showing red berry fruit and hints of spice.
That openness is why collectors often treat it as the first step into the domaine's range. One collector's guide calls it generally lighter-bodied than Grands Echezeaux, with a similar gaminess and bramble-fruit quality. It is still a grand cru from one of the world's most expensive estates, and in 2018 it sold for several times the price of most other Echezeaux.
2018: early, hot and complicated
The domaine began picking its 2018 crop on August 31, compared with September 4 in 2017. Bertrand de Villaine described the year as complicated: mildew hit part of La Tache, sugar levels ran so high that some fermentations had to finish in barrel, and yet the grapes showed concentration, with ripeness similar to 2017.
2018 was also a year of change in the domaine's leadership. Perrine Fenal, daughter of the former co-director Lalou Bize-Leroy, joined the management that year, and Aubert de Villaine, co-director since 1974, would step down at the end of 2021, handing over to his nephew Bertrand.
Tasted from barrel in late 2019, the Echezeaux struck one Burgundy specialist with its breadth and aromatic intensity, with 'lots of volume in the mouth' and more structure, rose-tinged fruit and a spiced finish. A Decanter critic later called it 'spicy, subtle and white pepper scented,' with impressive texture, racy acidity and floral top notes.
What the critics scored
Burghound gave the 2018 Echezeaux 94 points in January 2021, describing 'subtle but perceptible wood toast' framing aromas of poached plum, dark currant and spice, with fine density and a 'beautifully long and youthfully austere finish.' The review suggested it would be at its best from 2038.
Jeb Dunnuck scored it 96, describing the 'tight, structured, backward style of the vintage.' Decanter gave 95. Vinous appears as 92 to 94 in one merchant listing and 94 in another. Wine Advocate gave 94, with a note of cherries, plums, spring flowers, mushrooms and decaying leaves, powdery tannins and a 'long, bony, heady finish' showing whole-bunch influence.
The bottle and its market
In 2018 Echezeaux sat at the bottom of the domaine's price ladder, but only by the domaine's own standards. Before release, a California warehouse club offered the 2018 as part of a pre-sale four-bottle set with La Tache, Romanee-Saint-Vivant and Grands Echezeaux, available only by contacting staff and picking up in person.
In October 2026 one U.S. merchant listed a bottle at $3,199.97, and a price-comparison service showed an average asking price, before tax, of $3,299 per 750 ml bottle. These are asking prices, not sales.
The numbers
- Domaine's holding
- 4.67 ha of Echezeaux
- Whole vineyard
- 34.79 ha (2008)
- Typical production
- About 16,000 bottles a year
- 2018 production
- Not published in the sources found
- 2018 harvest start
- August 31, 2018
- Burghound
- 94 (January 2021)
- Jeb Dunnuck
- 96
Timeline
Jacques-Marie Duvault-Blochet buys Romanee-Conti and builds the estate, including its Echezeaux holdings.
Echezeaux becomes a grand cru appellation.
Aubert de Villaine becomes co-director of the domaine.
The domaine buys Romanee-Saint-Vivant, financing it through a sale and leaseback of its Echezeaux holdings and part of its Grands Echezeaux.
Perrine Fenal joins the domaine's management.
The domaine begins its 2018 harvest, four days earlier than in 2017.
The 2018s are shown from barrel at the domaine.
Burghound publishes a 94-point review of the 2018 Echezeaux.
Aubert de Villaine steps down as co-director at year's end; his nephew Bertrand de Villaine succeeds him.
Retail asking prices for the 2018 stand a little above $3,000 a bottle.
The world in 2018
SpaceX flies its Falcon Heavy rocket for the first time.
The Winter Olympics open in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Kim Jong Un crosses into South Korea, the first North Korean leader to cross the Demilitarized Zone since 1953.
NASA launches its InSight probe; it lands on Mars on November 26.
France wins the FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Daily price data
FLOAT reprices this wine every day from completed sales. Last updated November 12, 2026.
Price record
| Date | Price | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | $3,200 | Asking price, not a saleRetail asking price per 750 ml bottle at a U.S. merchant. Not a sale. |
This is an asking price, not a sale. It is what a seller wanted on the date shown. Asking prices often sit above what buyers pay, but an ask is not a ceiling: a sale can land on either side of it. It is not a value.
By reference price, Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Echezeaux Grand Cru 2018 is number 22 of 100 in the wine entries of the FLOAT 100. 12 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (82 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.
Did you know
- Echezeaux had about 80 owners in the early 2000s, so the same grand cru name appears on wines at very different prices.
- In 1988 the domaine sold and leased back its own Echezeaux holdings to help pay for Romanee-Saint-Vivant.
- The domaine's Echezeaux lies in a section called Les Poulailleres.
- A California warehouse club offered the 2018 on pre-sale in a four-bottle set with La Tache, and buyers had to pick it up in person.
- One critic suggested waiting until 2038 to open the 2018.
How this page is made
- The figure
- One reference price, shown with its own kind. FLOAT does not average it with anything or adjust it for time.
- Realized or not
- A realized price is a completed sale. An asking price, an estimate and a price-guide value are not sales, and are labeled as such wherever they appear.
- The story
- Researched from published records and checked fact by fact. Updated Oct 3, 2026.
- Archive
- Oct 5, 2026