2012 Jean-Michel Guillon Gevrey-Chambertin 'Vieilles Vignes'

Born in Paris, Jean-Michel Guillon arrived at Gevrey-Chambertin in 1980 with few connections or resources after he retired from aeronautics. Now the estate he runs with his son Alexis has holdings in more than 20 appellations, including Grand Cru sites like Mazis-Chambertin and Vougeot. He is reportedly the biggest buyer of new French oak in Burgundy after Domaine Romanée-Conti and the Hospices de Beaune. He has built up a Domaine of reputation from scratch with the help of his good friends and mentors like Rene Galland and Henri Jayer. As Allen Meadows commented, "Jean-Michel Guillon’s wines retain a clear sense of style and grace and remain identifiably Pinot Noir." 

Alexis and Jean-Michel have a reputation for using a level of new oak on their wines that many more traditional producers in Burgundy would think was ridiculous. They believe that due to their work in the vineyard to harvest perfectly ripe fruit, the wines should be aged in the best new French oak money can buy. They feel that the wines do not in fact smell and taste too oaky, rather you get wines that smell and taste expensive: silky, ripe, with that whiff of powdery vanilla that makes the wine's pedigree obvious. This a great Burgundy for newer collectors weaned on California wines, and traditionalists should give it a try as well to see the current style leading the pack.