1999 Sylvie Esmonin Gevrey-Chambertin Clos St. Jacques

Sylvie Esmonin is the estate formerly known as Domaine Michel Esmonin et Fille, in Gevrey-Chambertin. Sylvie studied oenology in Dijon then worked as a consulting winemaker before returning to the family estate and joining her father in the early 1990s. She owns or leases 20 acres of vineyards with Premier Cru parcels in Gevrey-Chambertin and Volnay. She also has village parcels in Gevrey-Chambertin. Clive Coates writes that “the atmosphere (at the estate) is tidy, competent and quietly confident, the wines suitably more feminine and more elegant when they are young than those of the cousins down the road.”

Clos St. Jacques is a 17.7-acre Premier Cru vineyard in the Gevrey-Chambertin appellation of Burgundy. Most Burgundy experts consider Clos St. Jacques to often be of equal quality to the nearby Grand Crus Chambertin and Clos de Beze. When the vineyard rankings were made in the 1930s it was decided that only vineyards contiguous with Chambertin and Clos de Beze could be Grand Crus. Clos St. Jacques lies to the west of the Grand Crus, but is very well situated at the same elevation as Chambertin and it has soil similar to Chambertin’s. Clive Coates notes that Clos St. Jacques “can be exquisite; rich, ample, full-bodied and distinctive.” Principal landowners are Armand Rousseau, 5.6 acres; Sylvie Esmonin, 4.5 acres; and Bruno Clair, 2.5 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.