Description
The wine
The name Clos du Roy — the king’s enclosure — signals something about how this lieu-dit has been regarded for centuries. It sits on a gentle mid-slope within Marsannay, slightly warmer and more sheltered than the upper-slope lieux-dits above it, with well-drained clay-limestone soils that give the wines more weight and structure than La Montagne or Le Chapitre. It is historically the most prestigious plot in the village and the one most consistently cited in the ongoing Premier Cru reclassification discussions.
A magnum is not simply a larger bottle. It ages more slowly and more gracefully — the ratio of wine to oxygen exposure through the cork is lower, which means the wine develops over a longer arc and arrives at its peak in better condition. For a wine of this ambition from a vintage as concentrated as 2019, the magnum is the right format.
2019 was one of the warmest growing seasons in recent Burgundy memory — consistently hot from flowering through harvest, producing wines of exceptional concentration and natural richness. At Clos du Roy, where the sheltered mid-slope position already produces riper, more structured fruit than the exposed upper lieux-dits, the vintage delivered a wine of real weight and depth. Seven years on, in magnum format, the 2019 Clos du Roy is approaching but not yet at its peak — showing the generosity of the vintage and the character of the site in equal measure.
Yann Charlopin applies the same approach throughout: organic farming, hand-harvested, fully destemmed, cold maceration before fermentation with native yeasts, slow ageing on fine lees, no filtration. The distinctive wax capsule applied by hand.
Tasting notes
Deep ruby with garnet edges beginning to show at seven years. Dark cherry, blackcurrant, a hint of warm spice, dried herbs, and a mineral earthiness that reflects the clay-limestone soils of the mid-slope. The palate has real presence and weight — more structure and depth than the other Marsannay lieux-dits, with a richness from the 2019 vintage that is integrating beautifully in magnum format. Fine-grained tannins, exceptional length, long mineral finish. Decant for at least an hour. Drink now through 2035.
Service: 16-17°C after decanting. Beef in sauce, roast lamb, venison, duck confit, aged hard cheeses.
2019 vintage note
2019 was one of the warmest recent Burgundy growing seasons — exceptional concentration and natural richness throughout the Côte de Nuits. For a mid-slope lieu-dit like Clos du Roy, the vintage’s warmth fills the wine’s structure without requiring extraction or manipulation. At seven years from harvest in magnum format, this is approaching but not yet at its peak — generous, complex, and built to develop through 2035.
Yann Charlopin founded Domaine Charlopin-Tissier in 2013 — son of Philippe Charlopin, mentored by Jean-Marie Fourrier. Organic farming, fully destemmed, cold maceration, no filtration. The wines appear on the lists of The French Laundry, Quince, SingleThread, and Les 110 de Taillevent in Paris.
