Domaine Armand Rousseau’s 2018 Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru “Clos des Ruchottes” is a Pinot Noir from a true monopole: the estate’s 1.06-hectare Clos des Ruchottes, about one-third of the Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru in Gevrey-Chambertin. The domaine began harvesting on 1 September 2018, and, according to The Burgundy Report, the wines were racked after malolactic fermentation with bottling likely beginning in March 2020.

In 2018, reviewers describe a wine that combines depth with lift—an impression reinforced by several excellent scores. Jasper Morris (Inside Burgundy) was especially taken, calling it “stunningly dense purple” with “a gorgeous hedonistic nose without losing the ethereal possibilities,” and finishing at 99 points (96–99). He highlights “a sensational direct core of intense raspberry fruit and super-ripe redcurrant with an endless finish,” noting that it saw “20% new wood.”

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded 97 points (95–97), emphasizing a more shadowed register at first: a “broody nose… black rather than red fruit, wet limestone, iris flowers and crushed stone.” On the palate he notes “filigreed tannins and excellent acidity,” and a distinctive mineral/saline close: “Quite saline toward the finish. Superb aftertaste.”

Burghound (94) frames the wine as both perfumed and structured, with “cool and pure aromas of the essence of red berry liqueur, spice and soft floral scents.” He praises “mineral-driven middle weight flavors” and “excellent delineation,” concluding with a “sneaky long if decidedly firm finish” and calling it “exceptionally promising.”

William Kelley (Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate) likewise stresses finesse, writing that it is “the most ethereal wine in the cellar” (94; 92–94), “racy and fine-boned,” with “chalky structuring tannins… cloaked in fleshy but succulent fruit.” Overall, the 2018 Clos des Ruchottes reads as a serious Grand Cru that leans on perfume and mineral detail as much as on fruit intensity.