Geneva, June 21st 2021 —  “Burgundy Fields Forever”, a wine auction held by Baghera/wines on Sunday, June 20th in Geneva, netted CHF 6'651'196 | $ 7'206'570 | € 6'073'872 with 97% of lots sold. This was the first live sale of the 2021 season for the Geneva-based auction house, confirming the health of the market and the appetite of fans of exceptional wines from around the world. Baghera/wines noted record participation, including sales orders from telephone and online bidders, demonstrating the enthusiasm that characterized the live sales room reunion.

A secret collection, owned by master winemaker Henri Jayer's eldest daughter, Lydie, captured everyone’s attention at the “Burgundy Fields Forever” sale. Lot 135 – the sale’s top lot comprising 12 bottles of Domaine Henri Jayer, Vosne-Romanée Cros-Parantoux 1999 and estimated at CHF 180'000 – 360'000 – went under the hammer at CHF 561'200 (including the buyer's premium), well above its high estimate. The second highest sale was lot 132 which went for CHF 451'400. The top ten lots in the auction netted over CHF 2.5 million.

The La Tâche Monopole from the Vosne-Romanée vineyard is described in the following words by the Domaine: “La Tâche is elegance and vigour. Under the frequent firmness of the tannins, passion burns, mastered by an implacable courtly elegance”.

For me, La Tâche is above all a lesson in purity and energy, that of the expression of the great Pinot Noir on an immense terroir. With a few years of ageing, the wine expresses divinely the subtle aromas of violets, and combines freshness and richness on the palate through perfectly silky tannins.

A wine with multiple dimensions – aromas of fruit, both elegant and wild, powerful on the palate, coupled with spices, crunchy cherry, enhanced secondary aromas, leading to an intense finish, deliciously mineral and with an unparalleled intensity. A subtle and pure Pinot.

Some of the remarkable La Tâche vintages presented in the sale “Burgundy fields forever”: 1950, 1959, 1995, 2005 and 2010.

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A selection of top-lots amongst the many Domaine de La Romanée-Conti grands crus' featured in this wine  auction :

Finesse, delicious fruitiness and floral complexity are the essential qualities of the wines of Domaine Bizot, especially its Echézeaux Grand Cru, which embodies the elegance and the beauty of Pinot Noir.

Mature, Echézeaux from Domaine Bizot reveals very expressive aromas of red fruits coated with spices and tender scents of violets and rose petals.

On the palate, this Pinot with its silky tannins emerges round and smooth, and intense possessing a seductive structure and a remarkable length. The aromatic and gustatory qualities of the fully matured J-Y. Bizot Echézeaux are such that one word comes to mind, continually and without exception – beauty.

Some of the remarkable vintages presented in the sale “Burgundy fields forever”: 1999, 2003, 2008, 2009 and 2012

Gathered under the same roof, iconic Geneva chefs Philippe Chevrier and Dominique Gauthier have created a three-star menu around Greater Burgundy’s two main grape varieties: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and around Burgundy wines to be auctioned on June 20th 2021 at the Beau-Rivage Geneva.

Just three years after the historic “Henri Jayer, the Heritage” on June 17th 2018, catapulting it to European wine auction leader with a total of CHF 34.5 million, Baghera/wines is offering a new event-sale underpinned by the memory of Henri Jayer. A veritable ode to Burgundy, the next Baghera/wines sale, “Burgundy Fields Forever”, will be held in Geneva on Sunday June 20th 2021.

Three remarkable collections will be brought together on this occasion: one the work of a Swiss collector; the second comprising great Burgundy vintages from the private collection of a renowned Côte d'Or estate; and the third presenting the legendary wines offered by the illustrious winemaker to his eldest daughter, Lydie Jayer.

Among this journey in three acts through the heart of the Burgundy Climats, here is a list of a few gems which deserve a closer look:

Class and perfection, elegance and strength, these are the unwavering qualities of the great Richebourgs of the late Henri Jayer. The bouquet opens up with gamey Pinot, cheerfully fragrant with plum and blackberry scents, complemented by notes of mushroom, leather and cedar or sandalwood.

This polished, “creamy” quality of Henri’s Richebourgs reveals itself through the vintages, and offers the silky, deliciously complex “Jayer” style of Pinot with spices which are seductive but subtly present. Wood, also present but so perfectly integrated, supports the splendid and refined backbone of this racy Richebourg.

Great style, refinement and a definite minerality on a terroir brilliantly tamed by the master of Pinot noir, the Richebourgs of Domaine Henri Jayer remain surprisingly young and expressive. Such class!

Some of the remarkable vintages presented in the sale “Burgundy fields forever”: 1959, 1978, 1980, 1985 and 1987

It is unquestionably one of the “Kings” of Burgundy’s Grands Crus – an unparalleled structure, dense and powerful, with ripe, firm tannins and extraordinary depth.

A wine shrouded in mystery, sometimes difficult to approach in its younger years. As it matures, and after 15-20 years in bottle, this Pinot Noir achieves a perfect balance: vibrant and complete, it also has immeasurable length on the palate.

Remarkable substance and density are the components that resonate as only the very best wines do. The firm, ripe and incredibly silky tannins of this Chambertin Rousseau are the other defining qualities of this wine, deeply rooted among the identifying features of Domaine Rousseau’s Chambertin.

Some of the remarkable vintages presented in the sale “Burgundy fields forever”: 1959, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2018

Panache and depth – these are for me the two immense qualities of Philippe Engel’s Clos-Vougeot.

Vintage after vintage, the Clos-Vougeot du Domaine is always beautifully generous, marked in its youth, by a great velvety quality, much elegance, a remarkable finesse and a bright fruitiness.

After a few years of ageing, it develops a complex bouquet with notes of spices, black fruits and undergrowth, elegantly combined in a wine with a round tannic structure and remarkable aromatic persistence. This Pinot with its distinctive subtle florality combined with the wonderful minerality of the Clos-Vougeot terroir, evolves admirably over the years, so rich and yet so pure.

Some of the remarkable vintages presented in the sale “Burgundy fields forever”: 1993, 1998, 2000, 2002 and 2004