That Weird Louis Jadot Pricing Makes Zero Sense
Okay, so I was browsing wine prices last week and something really bugged me. Louis Jadot Bourgogne Pinot Noir is sitting at $26-31, and they're STILL pushing 2021 vintage. For those who don't follow vintages obsessively (like I unfortunately do), 2021 was a disaster year. Cold, wet, tiny production. Yet somehow négociants like Jadot are still releasing bottles?
Here's what's actually happening – these big houses bought everything they could back then, and they're trickling it out slowly to keep prices stable. Smart business? Maybe. Good for us? Depends how you look at it.
I found Joseph Faiveley listed at $18 somewhere, got excited, then realized it was old 2018 stock someone's trying to dump. The real 2020-2021 bottles at Costco? Yeah, those are $35-42. Still cheaper than most Burgundy, but not the steal you'd think.
The Burgundy Crash That Wine Snobs Won't Admit Is Happening
Let me throw some numbers at you that'll make your head spin. The Liv-ex Burgundy 150 (basically the stock market for fancy wine) shows bid-to-offer ratios at 0.23. In normal human terms? Nobody wants to buy at current prices. Back in October 2021 when everyone was wine-drunk on stimulus money, that ratio was 7.14.
Average case prices dropped from £18,600 to £8,500. If you bought Burgundy as an "investment" in 2022, I'm sorry. I'm genuinely sorry.
But here's where it gets interesting – and I mean actually interesting, not wine-magazine interesting. The cheap stuff, the regional Burgundy everyone used to ignore? It's flying off shelves. Terres Secrètes, a co-op (yes, a CO-OP) won France's Winery of the Year in 2021, and people are actually buying their wines.
Living in Seoul, I've watched Korean importers completely change their game. They used to chase prestigious names. Now? They're all about these consistent, fairly-priced co-ops. One importer told me over drinks in Gangnam, "My customers don't care about prestige anymore. They want to actually drink the wine."
The Insane Pinot Noir Gold Rush Happening Outside Burgundy
This is where things get properly wild. Some winery in Roussillon (not Burgundy, Roussillon!) made a Pinot Noir that sold for €579 a bottle. The average Roussillon wine? €40-50. That's like selling a Honda Civic for Ferrari prices and actually getting buyers.
Jura's having its moment too. These wines average €80 versus Burgundy's €274, but Domaine Labet hit €118 per bottle. Even Muscadet – MUSCADET! – is making expensive Pinot Noir now.
I was at a tasting in Seoul last month where the sommelier literally said, "Forget Burgundy, Jura is where smart money goes." Two years ago, that would've been heresy. Now? Everyone's nodding along.
Why 2023 Wines Are a Minefield and 2024 Will Be Insane
The 2023 vintage was huge. Like, biggest-in-history huge. William Kelley said it was the largest yield since 1999. You know what that means? A lot of mediocre wine hiding behind fancy labels.
Neal Martin nailed it: "The Lord giveth and growers taketh away." Translation: God gave them tons of grapes, and greedy producers made too much wine instead of being selective.
Now 2024? Microscopic production. We're talking about harvest starting in freaking August because of climate change. The wines aren't even released yet and futures prices are already climbing. It's going to be a bloodbath when these hit the market.
Here's What You Should Actually Buy (With Your Real Money)
Forget the hype. Oregon Willamette Valley is your best bet right now. I'm talking $25-35 bottles that would make Burgundy villages blush. Division Winemaking, Cristom, Evening Land – these aren't just good "for the price," they're genuinely fantastic wines.
In Asian markets (I track Seoul, Hong Kong, and Singapore), Oregon wines finally have decent distribution. Two years ago you couldn't find them. Now they're everywhere, and prices haven't caught up to quality yet.
For négociants, skip the famous names. Mancey makes solid Burgundy for $40. François Martenot at $50 has this weird licorice thing that sounds gross but works brilliantly with Korean BBQ. Trust me on this one.
DRC? Henri Jayer? Unless you're laundering money or showing off, forget it. DRC Romanée-Conti averages $24,189. Domaine Leroy Musigny just hit $49,211. FORTY-NINE THOUSAND DOLLARS. For wine. That you drink once and it's gone.
The Investment Nobody's Talking About (Yet)
Champagne producers making still Pinot Noir. Not sparkling wine – actual red wine from Champagne. Marie-Noëlle Ledru, Romain Hénin – remember these names. Prices are climbing faster than Bitcoin in 2017.
Also, random one: Virginia Pinot Noir. I know, I know. Virginia. But climate change is real, and these wines are getting seriously good. In five years, we'll look back at 2025 Virginia Pinot prices the way we look at 2015 Oregon prices now.
A Seoul sommelier friend tracks this stuff obsessively. She watches Instagram tags, who's pouring what at hip restaurants, which producers show up at Hong Kong auctions. Her take? "By the time Wine Spectator writes about it, you're too late."
The Real Truth About Buying Burgundy Right Now
Look, the market's weird right now. It reminds me of Seoul real estate – everyone panics during crashes, but that's when you should pay attention. Not to buy everything, but to watch and learn.
Regional Burgundy at current prices could be smart. But wine isn't stocks. You can't panic-sell wine at 3 AM on your phone. You need storage, patience, and honestly, a bit of luck.
My advice? Buy what you want to drink. If it goes up in value, great. If not, at least you have good wine. The people who bought DRC in 2021 thinking they'd flip it? They're stuck with bottles they can't afford to drink and can't sell without massive losses.
And please, PLEASE, stop asking me about wine NFTs. That ship has sailed, hit an iceberg, and sunk to depths even James Cameron can't reach.
Disclaimer: This article contains no sponsored content or paid promotions. Wine prices, values, and characteristics vary based on market conditions, release timing, and individual storage conditions. All information provided is for reference only, and all purchase, storage, and consumption decisions remain the sole responsibility of the reader.