Parker: 'I should have scrutinised Jay Miller a lot more'

Published: 19 March, 2012

Robert Parker has admitted that "did not supervise Jay Miller as effectively as I should have" over the scandal surrounding visits to Spanish wineries.

Speaking to Liv-ex, Parker said he "should have been more hands-on and more diligent in asking questions as to what he was doing. Nothing was done that was illegal, but there were some things done that were just... I suppose perception is reality."

Parker also picked out the 2003, 2005 and 2001 vintages as being "underrated". He said there was "tremendous sentiment about 2005", adding that the wines "just need a lot of time" for the tannins to soften. As for the "bizarre year" of 2003, which had failures in Pomerol, St Emilion and the Graves, in contrast the Medoc, particularly Pauillac, St Estephe and St Julien, produced a lot of "profound wines".

"I bought a lot of Montrose; I bought Cos; I bought the Leovilles, the Pichons, Latour and Lafite. These are great wines, despite the question marks over the vintage," he added. But he warned: "You do have to be very careful though; the percentage of world-class red wines made in France in 2003 was very small. If you don't have the right information, you can get burnt badly."

He said 2001 is "drinking beautifully" adding that if he were a wine consultant he would advise his clients to buy them. "They are not blockbusters but they are rich. They are also very reasonably priced and somewhat forgotten," he added.

Highlighting Margaux as a "remarkable" appellation, Parker said he had always been impressed by Palmer and Chateau Margaux "but producers such as d'Issan, Brane Cantenac, Giscours and du Tertre have all improved so dramatically". He singled out Brane Cantenac and Malescot St Exupery as "doing the most fantastic work".

"But if I could only pick one wine, then what Alfred Tesseron has done at Pontet Canet really stands out," said Parker. Out of the first growths he picked out Latour and Lafite as being "on top of their game".

Outside of Bordeaux he said Malbecs coming out of Argentina were "thrilling", while he said Chile is doing well with Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

But he called Spain "the sleeping giant of the Mediterranean", with "unlimited potential".

To read the full article, visit Liv-ex.

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