2017 Domaine Bertrand Machard de Gramont Vosne-Romanée 750 ml

This is a quintessential small production wine from Burgundy’s premier Pinot Noir village. To find it, you’d likely need to be sitting inside a high-profile NYC wine bar or Michelin-starred restaurant on the day their shipment arrives. Grown on just half a hectare, the winery’s entire east coast allocation is typically slated for rare-wine hotspots like Gramercy Tavern, Terroir Tribeca, and Compagnie des Vins Surnaturel. 

But those acclaimed restaurants will have to wait until next year, because those bottles are headed directly to Wine Access members.

Vosne-Romanée, nicknamed the “pearl of the Côte,” is hallowed Pinot Noir ground, a storied village whose surrounding vineyards routinely produce bottles that fetch hundreds of dollars. Born of organically-farmed grapes from three local sites, the 2017 Domaine Bertrand Machard de Gramont captures all of the region’s heralded elegance and structure for just $79, making it an irresistible value and coveted wine list addition. 

Given this wine’s limited production and popularity among top-tier restaurants, it likely won’t be on the market at this price again.

This estate-grown wine has, time and again, dazzled at intimate restaurant dinners and upscale wine bar tastings. When it hits the glass, a seemingly endless waterfall of aromatics cascade, one after another—raspberry, lavender, licorice, black tea, wild herbs, and peppery spice. But the palate has a lot left to offer, showcasing satiny tannins touched by expressive black cherry and baking spices. It’s a beguiling wine, one that demands more than just one glass. 

Bertrand Machard de Gramont planted his Côte de Nuits vineyards in 1984 after kindling his vinous love while training at the legendary Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé. He carried that expertise into his new venture, crafting Burgundy reds full of character. His daughter Axelle joined in 2004 and implemented wholly organic, low-intervention practices that have further elevated the wines’ purity and freshness. 

Those qualities are especially evident in the 2017 bottling, which emerged from an abundant and extraordinary vintage that Vinous called “a modern classic” and Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate said produced reds “characterized by incredible grace and succulence.” Axelle Machard de Gramont’s reverence for her land truly shined when gifted with a vintage that produced such nuanced and delicate grapes.

Axelle knows her land is excellent, so she doesn’t do anything to distract from it. All of the grapes are hand-harvested and 100% destemmed, preserving well-balanced tannins. Aging takes place over 18 to 20 months in used oak barrels, giving the wine ample time to draw out the grapes’ subtle complexity without overt oak influence. The resulting unfiltered bottle contains a wholly pure expression of Vosne-Romanée’s distinguished terroir.