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- 2019 Domaine Faiveley, Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Lavaut Saint-Jacques
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2019 Domaine Faiveley, Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Lavaut Saint-Jacques
Bottle size (ML)
Current price
$768
Start Your Wine Collection with 2019 Domaine Faiveley, Gevrey-Chambertin Premier Cru, Lavaut Saint-Jacques
Begin your portfolio with a prestigious wine that has a history of growth.- Enjoy fully managed, secure storage facilities with insurance coverage.
- Get expert advice on when to hold and when to sell.
Critics Scores
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Aromas of plums, smoky berry fruit, forest floor and peonies preface the 2019 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Lavaux Saint-Jacques, a medium to full-bodied, layered and lively wine built around succulent acids and youthfully chalky tannins. This is a touch finer-boned and more precise than its richer 2018 counterpart. Jérôme Flous told me that Faiveley began picking on September 9, finishing by the 20th, and that yields averaged out at around 35 hectoliters per hectare in white and a little less in red. Comparing the 2019 vintage to 'a more concentrated version of 2010,' he admires—as I do—its vibrant fruit tones and refined tannins, finding it more elegant than 2018. The quality of the red wines chez Faiveley is old news, and for more information on this firm's evolution I direct readers to my report published in the August 2020 Week 1 issue of The Wine Advocate. It's worth underlining, however, how good the whites are these days: Flous tells me that he now includes fûts from Damy and Chassin in the white wine barrel program, and in the last few vintages, I've found the wines' new oak component better and better integrated.
Vinous
The 2019 Gevrey-Chambertin Lavaux Saint-Jacques 1er Cru is completely destemmed. It has an open-knit bouquet of brambly red fruit, singed leather and loamy aromas, all well defined. The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy black fruit and lightly spiced. The pleasant edgy finish leaves a hint of dark chocolate on the aftertaste. Very fine and commendable salinity.
James Suckling
So complete, it’s hard to believe that this isn’t a Grand Cru. Stunning concentration, very fine tannins and lovely freshness at the long, intensely mineral finish. So much drive and elegance! Drink or hold.
Decanter
Faiveley owns just under 1ha in the cool site of Lavaux-St-Jacques (following the purchase of Dupont-Tisserandot) and the oldest vines here were planted just after the Second World War. The wine is a bit restrained on the initial attack, but there is very pretty blackberry fruit scented with wild herbs that opens up on the palate, along with a silky texture and lovely length. (CC)
Burghound.com
A cool, pure and ultra-fresh nose features plenty of sauvage and underbrush characters on the pretty mélange of wild red and dark berry aromas. The tension-filled and intensely mineral-driven flavors are supported by dense but relatively fine tannins on the explosively long, youthfully austere and serious finale. Unusually for Lavaut, this possesses a beguiling inner mouth perfume that renders this all the more attractive.
Burghound
A cool, pure and ultra-fresh nose features plenty of sauvage and underbrush characters on the pretty mélange of wild red and dark berry aromas. The tension-filled and intensely mineral-driven flavors are supported by dense but relatively fine tannins on the explosively long, youthfully austere and serious finale. Unusually for Lavaut, this possesses a beguiling inner mouth perfume that renders this all the more attractive.
Region Summary
Small in size but mighty in influence, Burgundy is home to some of the most sought-after and investment-worthy wines on Earth. Legendary vineyards and centuries of winemaking tradition combine to produce incomparably powerful pinot noirs and subtle chardonnays. Add in extremely low annual yields, and it’s easy to see why Burgundy’s prices are second to none.
Why We're Investing
Pound for pound, Burgundy (or Bourgogne to the locals) produces more expensive, high-appreciating wines than any other wine region. According to Liv-ex, Burgundy is also the best-performing region over the last five years, ten years, and 15 years. There’s no reason to think that will change anytime soon. That’s because Burgundians are obsessed with winegrowing. The fixation on slopes, soil, and sunlight is a way of life. And while demand is high, two historical figures have ensured that this world-class wine is increasingly produced in smaller and smaller quantities. First are the Cistercians, an order of Catholic monks founded in the 11th century who owned extensive property in Burgundy. They noticed that each of their vineyards produced slightly different wines based on the soil and sunlight. This realization laid the foundation for the region’s vineyard lines and its fixation with terroir. Today, French law protects vineyard lines, which prevents the expansion of property. But aren’t other regions like this? Not quite. Châteaux and producers in Bordeaux, Champagne, and elsewhere can source grapes from other vineyards for their wine. That is not the case in Burgundy. A vigneron cannot expand production unless they buy more land in their existing vineyard. That requires finding a willing seller, something that is rarer than most top-shelf Burgundies. The second important figure is Napoleon. (Yes, that Napoleon.) His Napoleonic Code required the equal distribution of inherited property and land amongst heirs. As a result, Burgundy’s vineyards are becoming further fragmented with each generation. Some prestigious winemakers have no more than one row of vines to their name. That’s not all. Burgundy has a semi-continental climate that contributes to low annual yields. A single severe frost or hail can decimate a harvest, even limiting the production of some wines to a single barrel. With unpredictable weather leaving yields in limbo each year, names like Domaine Leroy, Armand Rosseau, and Joseph Drouhin command a premium at auctions. Taken to the extreme, a single bottle of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti once sold for $558,000 at auction, a then-world record.
What's the Latest
Historically, Bordeaux has dominated the secondary wine market, once accounting for 96 of the trade by value. Buyers viewed Burgundy as too risky and fickle because of its semi-continental climate that contributed to inconsistent vintages. Modern technological advances in viticulture and vinification have offset some climate challenges, and Burgundy has rapidly gained market share. In 2022, Burgundy reached its highest percentage of trade by value at 51.0, temporarily eclipsing Bordeaux atop the wine world. People aren’t just investing in more Burgundy. They’re investing in different kinds of Burgundy wine, too. Over the last three years, the number of different Burgundies traded on the secondary market has risen 284. Consumer demand has expanded beyond the top sub-regions like Vosne-Romanée and Gevrey-Chambertin, and there is still room to grow. Perhaps most importantly, Burgundy remains resilient even in bumpy economic times. The iconic French region delivers what collectors and connoisseurs want most – brand equity, liquidity, and an extensive track record of growth. It makes Burgundy an easy asset to appreciate in any economic climate.
Looking Forward
The insatiable demand for Burgundy has taken the region to stratospheric heights. According to Liv-ex, the Burgundy 150 grew 39.3 in 2021. That was the second-best mark of any wine region, behind only Champagne at 41.5. Experts predict that momentum will carry into the coming years. Charles Antin, an auctioneer and head of wine auction sales at Zachys, put it this way, “We’re still setting world records for certain wines, but the graph can’t go up as steeply as it has, forever. My prediction is a cooling off, not a falling, but continuing to rise in the long run.” Even with climbing prices, eagle-eyed Vinovestors can still find remarkable deals. For instance, 2015 Domaine Leroy Musigny Grand Cru was released at $2,000 per bottle. Today, it retails for more than $100,000, if you can find it. Meanwhile, 2020 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet debuted at $1,600 per bottle, a bargain for anyone lucky enough to get their hands on a bottle.