Kaizen is the Japanese word for the relentless pursuit of quality. The focus on every detail everyday if it can make the product better. If there is any producer in the portfolio that embodies this maniacal pursuit of quality, it is Jerome Galeyrand.- He made two cuvees of Marsannay "Combe de Prie" in 2015. One with and without So2. Just because he wanted to see what it was like. We tasted them and were undecided which was better.
- Jerome used to make a Bonnee Mares, but did not like the way the guy was working the vineyard so stopped working with him.
- He is all business, pays so much attention to detail, is very open to experimentation and is not bogged down in dogma or labeling himself.
He goes to the beat of his own drummer in a relentless pursuit of quality. The wines are absolute steals for the price and he has a wide array of villages he sources from. Not only does he make an astounding array of Gevreys but his Marsannay and today's wine his Fixin, are both brilliant and some of the best of their kind. He puts everything into every appellation. This was my 2nd time visiting Jerome and I got to know him much better this time. The wines, I cannot stress this enough, are absolutely top class and on the same level as Herve Murat as well as two producers that we don't work with anymore (and whose prices have now skyrocketed) Thomas Bouley in Volnay and Domaine Duroche in Gevrey. Jerome is on this level. To put it mildly, these are some of the best values, as they are presently priced. As I've said before and I will say again he is like a cross between Murat and Fourrier. He has the ridiculous fruit intensity of Murat and the finesse and breed of Fourrier.
First up has to be one of the best deals in Gevrey-Chambertin ever, the 2014 Jerome Galeyrand Gevrey-Chambertin "Clos de la Justice," for as little as $39.99 on a 4-pack. I love this lieu-dit as it makes subtle, pretty, elegant and well fruited but in a subtle way, Gevrey. This was one of my favorites of Jerome's 14's. So tender, so precise. As Jerome says, "this is a wine for restaurants as don't have to keep it for 10 years." Coming from Jerome that says a lot. His top wines are built to age. So it's nice to have one from a great terroir that can be drunk now. The nose is classic Gevrey. Meaty, huge cherries, floral and spice. Gevrey symphony in grand effect. A wine you can smell for ages before you take a sip. And then you do and it is devastatingly easy to drink. Luscious deep fruit, black and blue kind, velvety tannins, on point freshness and purity like only Jerome can do. Spice and florals and such profound inner mouth aromas. The wine is the truth. I took a low margin as I wanted people to be able to buy a Gevrey for $39.99 that can be drunk young and will age for 10-12 years. Wines like this don't come around that often. Compare Single Vineyard Gevreys at $70+ and this is way better. Waaaaaay better.
With that today I also have the 2014 Jerome Galeyrand Fixin Champs des Charmes for as little as $32.99 a bottle. Fixin is a hop and skip away from Gevrey and Jerome told me that this, he considers a baby Gevrey. I will not disagree with him. It's an awesome bottle of Fixin. It's nice not to sell $75 Fixin anymore, (inside joke for old Fass Selections clients), and sell Fixin for what it should be priced at. The wine has a great nose. Meaty, very floral, gamey, earthy, and big black cherries. The palate is terrific with incredible inner mouth aromas and blue and black fruits with killer crunch. Astonishingly pure. Fresh acids and subtle yet velvety tannins finish it off along with an exceptional tinge of minerality on the finish. This wine is unreal for the money. I love being able to sell wines this great for little scratch. A great Burgundy for little scratch is what it is all about. This is not josh a throw away wine either. It from old vines. One parcel was planted in 1947 and another parcel in the 60's. This is appellation and the soils age clay dominant which gives this wine an awesome rusticity and those velvety tannins.
2014 Jerome Galeyrand Fixin Champs des Charmes - $34.99
($131.96 4-pack) (LIMITED)
2014 Jerome Galeyrand Gevrey-Chambertin "Clos de la Justice" - $41.99 ($159.96 4-pack) (VERY LIMITED)
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