1998 Nicolas Potel Romanee-St. Vivant

Maison Nicolas Potel is a negociant started in Burgundy in the late 1990s by Nicolas Potel, son of the legendary winemaker Gerard Potel, who founded Domaine de la Pousse d’Or in Volnay. After Gerard’s death in 1997 Nicolas started the negociant business, but a falling out with his business partners in 2009 forced him out of the business that still bears his name. The company is now owned and operated by the brothers Louis and Armand Cottin of Maison Laboure-Roi, a nearly two-hundred year old Burgundy negociant. Nicolas Potel has had no connection with Maison Nicolas Potel since 2009. The Maison offers a large portfolio of Grand Cru, Premier Cru and other Burgundies.

Romanee-Saint-Vivant is a 23-acre Grand Cru vineyard just on the northern edge of the commune of Vosne-Romanee in the Cote de Nuits. The vineyard faces east, has a gentle incline and an elevation of 250 to 265 meters. The soil is clay and limestone. Principal producers of Romanee-Saint-Vivant are Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, with 13.23 acres; Leroy, with 2.48 acres; and Domaine de Corton-Grancey/Louis Latour, with 1.9 acres.

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.