Beaune Premier Cru, 'Clos Du Roi', Domaine Robert Ampeau et Fils, 1989
Beaune Premier Cru, 'Clos Du Roi', Domaine Robert Ampeau et Fils, 1989
- 75cl
- 13%
- Red Still
- Pinot Noir
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Optimal drinking window: 2026 - 2032
Est. delivery in late autumn 2026
Robert Ampeau is one of Burgundy's great eccentrics — a domaine that famously refused to release wines until it deemed them ready, which often meant a decade or more in the cellar before a bottle ever reached a customer.
This 1989 Beaune Premier Cru from the Clos du Roi is a case in point: a wine that has been doing its quiet work for over thirty years, and arrives with all the composure of something that was never in a hurry. At 37 years old, it sits in that rare category of aged Burgundy where the fruit has receded just enough to let everything else come forward — earth, spice, dried flowers, a whisper of iron.
As these wines have remained unmoved in the cold cellars at Ampeau since bottling, the conditions for a very slow, undisturbed ageing are perfect. Given the nature of the wines, we are unable to offer credit for corked/out of condition bottles, but our experience with these bottles is that the condition and ex-cellar provenance is impeccable.
Clos du Roi sits in the upper-middle section of Beaune's premier cru hillside, where the slope steepens slightly and the soils shift towards thinner, stonier limestone over a marlstone base. This leaner soil profile gives the site more structure and grip than the fleshier plots lower on the hill, producing wines with better acidity and longer-term cellaring potential. The elevation and east-facing aspect moderate ripeness, even in warm years like 1989, keeping freshness alive in the fruit.
Beaune Premier Cru covers 42 recognised lieux-dits across the slopes above the historic town of Beaune, and collectively represents one of the largest premier cru appellations in Burgundy by area. The wines are almost exclusively red Pinot Noir, with character that sits between the more austere, mineral-driven style of Nuits-Saint-Georges to the north and the rounder, more generous expression of Pommard to the south. Clos du Roi is one of the most esteemed individual sites within the appellation, with a long history of producing structured, age-worthy reds. No premier cru from Beaune is ever quite as famous as its grand cru neighbours in Vosne or Chambolle, which arguably makes them better value for the patient.
The summer of 1989 was long, hot, and dry across Burgundy — the kind of season that has winemakers grinning and worrying in equal measure. Yields were low, grapes concentrated quickly, and harvest came early, producing fruit with ripe sugars and relatively low natural acidity. That heat signature is written all over the wines: they came out rich, forward, and generous, without the structure that cooler years build in.
For Pinot Noir, 1989 delivered something immediately seductive — flesh and warmth rather than sinew and tension. The Côte de Nuits produced some serious bottles that have aged well, though many were always more about pleasure than longevity. The Côte de Beaune whites, particularly in Meursault and Puligny, were opulent but carried enough mineral grip to go the distance. The best reds are drinking beautifully now — sorry, drinking superbly now — at full, generous maturity. Hold back nothing; these wines are not waiting for you.
OUR GROWERS
Robert Ampeau & Fils
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