“The Great Wine Book”

(c) 1982 Jancis Robinson

Before I throw this 40+ year old book out I had another quick look. It covers the classics from France, Italy and Spain with a bit on America and Australia. I did not read it cover to cover. I think it’s designed to just skip around to what interests you at the time.

When I said America it was just California and, of course, the well travelled Robert Mondavi leads off. I’ll get to Australia a bit later.

In the introduction Jancis reflects on the unusual worship grapes enjoy as an agricultural product as it is converted into an end product. We don’t have professional potato tastings, reviews of the World Atlas of Beetroot or classes in citrus appreciation as she points out.

Her focus is on enterprises with proven track records of excellence. Whether we measure excellence by price, reputation, hype or something else is not clear. Like all lists most people won’t disagree about who is in but who is not. But she anticipates this with an “also ran” list on page 11.The lists of inclusions are on pages 12 and 13 with a summary, and the official classifications of France are on page 14.

On of those to make the “also ran” list was Stag's Leap. “In 1976, the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon iconized Napa Valley when it was awarded the highest red wine honor at the famous Judgment of Paris Tasting”

She says she is less concerned with the history of the vineyards or the enterprises themselves, which can easily be covered elsewhere, but more on the people. But it does read like history in a sense when the characters in her story on Tyrell’s Vat 47 Murray Tyrell (2000), Len Evans (2021) and Dr Max Lake (2009) are no longer with us.

I was most interested in Australia, obviously. I noted Penfolds Grange 1975 was listed as £20 and $US36. I though these prices were very low until I remember buying some st $10-$20 by the dozen in 1980’s on a trip to Melbourne.

Speaking of Penfold’s, I had never heard of Penfold's Sparkling Tiffany but it still exists apparently.

The third, and final, Aussie inclusion was Brian Crosser’s Petaluma Chardonnay. We irreverently drank some in the late 70s or early 80s with fish and chips. But, yeah he earned his spot. He has been an “influencer” before the term took on a pejorative meaning due to social meaning, not least as an educator.

I have an interest in Germany. Our oldest daughter lives there and we study the language at U3A. So I had a re-read of the entry on JJ Prȕm of Volvray. Apparently, they make their sparkling in the pétalant style rather than the mousseux style. I’m not sure Jancis explained it but a search revealed Vouvray Pétillant and Vouvray Mousseux are the official (if rarely used) titles for Vouvray's sparkling wines, made from Chenin Blanc. The former is semi sparkling, the latter fully so.

Of course she had to include Champagne. She almost said she considered Blanc de Blanc and Vintage champagnes are modern things only. She mentions "Récoltant-Manipulant" and implies we know that it means a grower who makes champagne exclusively from their own grapes. Is this a new trend against the big house with their consistent styles or a move back to simpler times? Among so many well-known names She chose Krug and their old style method of fermentation in oak rather than stainless steel. Is that what she means by “inox”? She throws in technical terms without sufficient explanation.

I noted her single pick from Alsace was Hugel and that’s fair enough. Hugel is one of the best-known and oldest wine producers in Alsace, having been established in 1639. She also mentions Trimbach, another famous label. Others, such as, Joel Butler MW choose Domaine Zind Humbrecht. She talks about Johnny and his part in drawing up the rules for “Vendange Tardive” wines, without much explanation of what they actually are.

Hugel, she says, is the third oldest in the book. Tignanello pre-dates it by more than 250 years. It is owned by the Antinori dynasty and is the sole entry for Italy. Many of us would know it by the term “Super Tuscan”, breaking the rules for Chianti. But Jancis doesn’t use that word.

In her introduction to Bordeaux, Jancis uses the term “orgueil” which apparently means “boast; showiness; pomp; splendor”.We should know that the left bank is about blends with cabernet dominant and the right bank predominantly merlot based. She contrasts the Left Bank of the Gironde as being farmers living on their land and the Right Bank with its absentee landowners. It might be an unfair generalisation. You would have to drill deeper. Her choices are hardly contentious.

The first entry is for Château Margaux. It was sold by the Ginestets because they could not afford works to alleviate the impacts of flooding. The French government refused an offer from American “National Brands” and it was purchased by André Menzelopoulos. He died in 1980 and the property is run by Laura, his French born widow or châtelaine as Jancis prefers to call her. She is advised by renowned Professor Emile Peynaud, who also advises nearby Château Lafite-Rothschild. Is it a coincidence that both are considered “feminine”, if one is still allowed to use that term? I like that she runs cattle, not for profit but manure.

It was for nostalgia I read about Château d’Yquem. The oldest and most famous wine I ever had was a sip of 1945 Château d’Yquem at FATS, a first and third Sunday tasting at Grace Park Tennis Club run by Ian Hickinbottom back in the late 1970s when we would drive up from Foster for a weekend of football and wine. Relying on noble rot, pickers go through the vineyard perhaps ten times in six weeks. It’s a hard and expensive process.

Burgundy is more difficult to characterise. We might say “a bit low key” in comparison to Bordeaux. There is, at times, a farmer-peasant vibe and the notorious multiplicity of owners. Also, the role of négociant is important. Jancis does not want to include ready to drink wines from Beaujolais, despite the fame of Georges Duboeuf – a fair call*.

And so on to Domaine de la Romanée Conti, the highly prized and highly priced standout or, as she says “fabulously priced “. The Domaine has many labels – La Tâche, Richeborg, Grand Echézeau and La Montrachet Chardonnay. All, no doubt, have great appeal.

Well, as I said, I have finished with this history book. If you want it it’s yours. Just let me know.

^x If you are interested in Beaujolais I’ll let Eveline Chartier Of “Shades of Grape” tell you more in her email dated April 22, 2025.

“Reds from the Beaujolais region are 100% Gamay.

Beaujolais is just south of Burgundy, in eastern France. In fact, Beaujolais is considered part of greater Burgundy. Burgundy used to grow Gamay until Philip the bold banned it.

What distinguishes the Beaujolais 10 crus from the Beaujolais and Beaujolais-Villages sub-regions is the soil. The crus’ parent rock is composed of granite, schist, and sandstone. The differences in the parent rock composition as well as the topography, elevation, and exposure to the sun, is what sets the sub-regions of Beaujolais wines apart. (As someone who did geology in the 1970s, I understand but..) (That doesn’t make sense to me - Evelyn).

It boils down to ripeness. The sites that are sunnier, have warmer air temperature, and warmer soils will produce wines that are more intense in flavor and aromas.

It is now time to let go of all the analysis and remember that wine is meant to be enjoyed! So, let’s go enjoy!”