Seize the wine … seize the day when you see the great bottle. Wine prices are going trough the roof and I’m pretty sure they will rise even further in the future. So if you find “The” wine at a expensive but resonably fair price on a restaurant or in a wine shop … seize the day and buy the bottle.
Henri Jayer
Henri Jayer wines are rare and expensive, but the latest auction in Hongkong revealed a huge demand for the wines, and some very high prices.
At the auction on 10th of February 2012 – Christies sold 744 Bottles from the private cellar of Henri Jayer – including 100 magnums and 644 normal bottles. The total price for the 98 lots were 66,029,700 HKD, equivalent to 8,512,666 USD.
A rare interview with the master himself Henri Jayer. Just found this short interview about Cros Parantoux on Youtube. Enjoy!
The Henri Jayer Richebourg 1985 is a legendary wine, and when we found it at a reasonable price at Les Millisime in Gevrey Chambertin (around 4000 FFR) we could not resist – even at lunch time. The wine was massive and quite closed compared to other Jayer wines I have tasted, and offered another dimension of structure and minerality of the quite masculine Richebourg vineyard. Very concentrated and complex, and much better than the La Tache 1985. Very good lenght and stil quite young on the palate, whith a fresh pinot expression in the nose, and very few mature notes.… Read the full article →
The third Henri Jayer of the evening at Lameloise. The Cros Parantoux 1988 is one of the most memorable bottles I have tasted. The sheer balance of the wine, the lush and very sophisticated tannins, the pure red pinot fruit, the Jayer intensity. Very fine harmony, a lot of minerality and complexity. Not a perfect wine, but a perfect bottle of a truely outstanding wine, with zen like drinkability and pleasure.
(now – 2020) 96p – tasted in november 2000
The 1989 Cros Parantoux tasted in 2001 at Restaurant Lameloise in Chagny, actually the last bottle of Jayer we had from this cellar. The 1989 was ripe and concentrated and quite dark in the fruit expression compared to the 1988, and not quite as balanced and lush. Very good length and the typical Jayer intensity, needed a little more time to open ud, as the 1989 tannins were present – or perhaps I could still taste the Richebourg 1985 we had for lunch!… Read the full article →
Tasted at Cote D’Or just a few month before the tragic death of Bernard Loiseau. The 1995 Vosne Romanee village came after Meo-Camuzet 1993 Clos de Vougeot, and was amazing. The sheer intensity of the wine overpowered the bigger terroir of the Meo wine. The Jayer village wine was lush, silky and very ripe with a fantastic drinkablity – should have been a double magnum! A truely fine wine.
(now – 2020) 91p – tasted in October 2002
Here is an old interview with the great master Henri Jayer – made by Jancis Robinson. I have never seen Henri Jayer on video before – and it’s somehow a fine moment to see him talking about his view on winemaking. Take a look!
Echézeaux is one of the largest grands crus of the whole Côte d’Or. It’s divided into a number of plots or climats the vineyard, located around the smaller Grands-Echézeaux.
I have tasted some very good bottles of Echezeaux, but also some very poor bottles where only the label was an indication of its grand cru status. Why this variation .. and what is a good Echezeaux?
I use my own 100 point rating system here at Winehog.org. Compared with other rating systems used by Robert Parker, Wine Spectator, Allen Meadows (BurgHound), I have more steps between 85 points and 100 points.
The change of the rating system is due to the need to separate the many really good and fine wines rated in the spread between 85 points and 93 points. I really like Clive Coates clear and simple terms … good, very good, fine and very fine, and has integrated these on my 100 points scale.… Read the full article →