I never knew the man in person. I did know his wines and when I traveled throughout the US I was always glad to see them on the menu. They were dependable. I could count on them to be good.
I was saddened to hear of his passing.
And I always remember the portrait I took of one of his first ever chardonnays – the 1983 KJ chardonnay. I enjoyed the wine and the image then and I post it here for you to enjoy. It was the first classic buttery chardonnay style I had ever seen. The image became iconic for me and it is actually the center-fold of Wine’s Hidden Beauty. Its beauty always represented Jess to me. Andre Tshelistcheff said this photo captured the jewels in wine. Jess was one of the jewels of our industry.