A Personal Recommendation
1988 Henriot Cuvée des Enchanteleurs: JEROS
Recently Released from Henriot
The Only 88 3-Liters in the US
"This is a sort of Champagne of Champagnes - a more classic, typical representative of this type of wine does not exist."
- Richard Juhlin
Richard Juhlin's review continues with phrases like, "incredibly splendid" and "totally brilliant."
This is a staggering wine. We opened a jero this past weekend at a staff rooftop get-together, and when we discovered a small, undevoured amount leftover the next day, the wine was insane, with an incredible amount of definition and energy while having fleshed out substantially over time. The jero rocked my staff and we all wondered if there has ever been a sub-$1000 3-liter of vintage tête-de-cuvée Champagne of this quality.
I would guess, conservatively, that this wine will power on for another two decades in this format (jeroboams are 3.0Ls - the equivalent of four regular-sized bottles), meaning that it is destined to be a half-century Champagne.
The provenance is perfect: These were sourced from Henriot - a cache of jeros recently released from their very own crayères (natural chalk cellars quarried by the Romans 2,000 years ago), where the constant temperature is 54 degrees Farenheit at 98% humidity.
 |
While the house style is known for wines that strikingly combine fantastic elegance with powerful richness, the tête-de-cuvée Enchanteleurs takes this signature up a notch or two. This 1988 (a favorite vintage of mine) displays a broad spine of powerful citrus with a tension on the palate that pulls the density of this wine into a fine, sinewy, silken form exploding into a mélange of fruit. Note: In this format, this wine is still very, very young. This belongs in the most über-sophisticated cellars.
The Cuvée des Enchanteleurs is made up of 100% Grand Cru fruit that takes extra time aging on its lees. The house is known (with all of its cuvées) for extended lees contact as well as extended bottle-aging before release (typically twice what's required by law), which contributes not only to the depth of these wines, but also to their freshness and longevity. The Enchanteleurs goes above and beyond with at least 12 years on the lees - for reference, the 1996 is the house's current release of Enchanteleurs.
While our small treasure trove represents all of the 1988 Enchanteleurs jeroboams in the U.S., this is not an exceedingly large stash. If you are interested, please let us know quickly and give us your maximum order.
To place your order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com to this email or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Robert Schagrin
Managing Partner
Crush Wine & Spirits
Richard Juhlin: "Initially weak, but beautiful nose of white flowers, acacia, toffee, and vanilla. Light to medium-bodied taste with fine freshness, breeding, and elegance. Today its strength is just beginning to appear. Incredibly splendid! Totally brilliant recently, with an increased fattiness and buttery concentration of all the vanilla aromas and beautifully floral perfume. This is a sort of Champagne of Champagnes—a more classic, typical representative of this type of wine does not exist."