This is Henri Jayer's Cros Parantoux, the Vosne-Romanée Premier Cru he rescued from abandoned scrubland and turned into one of Burgundy's most coveted reds. The 1992 is a mature bottle from a lighter, generous vintage that has aged gracefully.
About This Wine
1992 was a large, early-drinking vintage for Côte de Nuits reds, but Cros Parantoux, with its cool, high position and naturally fresh acidity, produced a wine of more depth than the year suggested. More than thirty years on, expect a wine led by tertiary notes, with perfume and silky texture over power. Bottle condition and provenance matter a great deal at this age.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Red berries and plum, rose, sous-bois, sweet spice and a hint of coffee.
- Palate: Silky and evolved, with red fruit, savoury spice, resolved tannin and lively acidity.
- Finish: Gentle and lingering, with earth, dried flowers and lingering sweetness of fruit.
Serving & Food
Stand the bottle upright for a day, then decant gently just before serving at 15 to 16°C in a large Burgundy glass. Drink now. Serve with roast partridge, wild mushroom fricassée or a simple dish of veal and morels.
How to Enjoy
Mature-Burgundy lovers and collectors of Jayer's own bottlings.
Product Details
Producer: Henri Jayer
Appellation: Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cros Parantoux
Region: Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France
Vintage: 1992
Grape: Pinot Noir
Volume: 750mL
About the Domaine
Henri Jayer (1922 to 2006) grew up in Vosne-Romanée and studied oenology in Dijon. From 1945 he sharecropped the Camuzet family's vines, including Richebourg and Les Brûlées, keeping half the crop, while also working a small inheritance that included Échézeaux and Les Beaux Monts. He insisted on low yields, fully destemmed fruit, a cool pre-fermentation maceration and no filtration, ideas that shaped a generation of Burgundy growers.
Cros Parantoux sits above Richebourg on thin topsoil over hard limestone. It had been left fallow after phylloxera and was used for artichokes during the war. From 1951 Jayer bought plots, cleared the rock, partly with explosives, and replanted. He built up about 0.72 hectares of the 1.01 hectare climat, and for years blended the young vines into his village wine. The first Cros Parantoux label appeared with the 1978 vintage.