Jean-Michel Cazes left us at the grand age of 88, called ‘Bordeaux wine’s finest ambassador’ by Jancis Robinson, he had spent the last 50 odd years producing and promoting Bordeaux wine across the globe.
He studied in the UK and Paris and worked in the capital in IT with IBM before heading to Texas. He made his way back to his native Pauillac in the early 1970s, wife and children in tow, to help with the two family businesses, wine and insurance.
As well as the local insurance agency, his family owned Château Lynch Bages, classified growth of Pauillac and Château les Ormes de Pez in Saint Estèphe. Back then, Bordeaux was really struggling, it was the insurance business that paid the bills. He had to wait until the 1980s until wine income could start to support the family.
He was a true Médocain, living and breathing the region, one of the few owners of a Grand Cru Classé to live full time on their property.
His international experience gave him a unique vision, which he brought with him to what was then a back water of Bordeaux. He was both an actor in and a witness to the revival of Bordeaux’s fortunes through embracing changing technology, many great vintages, travel, promotions and pioneering of wine tourism in the Médoc.
Axa Millesimes
In 1987 he set up Axa Millésimes, the wine arm of the insurance company he was an agent for. They purchased Château Pichon Baron in Pauillac, renovated it and opened up for visits by the public. He remained at the helm for 14 years and, under his management, Axa Millésime became a power house for Bordeaux, owning neighbouring Château Pibran, Château Suduiraut in Sauternes, for a time Franc Mayne in Saint Emilion and Château Petit village in Pomerol. He also created the negociant Compagnie Médocaine and spread their influence further afield with Domaine de l’Arlot in Burgundy, Disznoko in Tokay Hungary and Quinta do Noval in Portugal. More recently they expanded into California with Outpost and Platt vineyard.
He simultaneously expanded the family portfolio creating the Michel Lynch Brand and negociant house, adding Château Villa Bel-Air in the Graves, Domaine de L’Ostal in the Languedoc, Domaine des Sénéchaux in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, a joint venture in the Douro, (his wife is Portuguese although raised in Mozambique) and in 2017 neighbouring Château Haut-Batailley in Pauillac.
La Commanderie
He didn’t only promote his and Axa’s properties but the whole of Bordeaux. He had a lot of fun doing it, a sense of fun he shared with all comers, helping to demystify the wines of the region.
For 11 years Jean-Michel Cazes was Grand Master of La Commanderie de Bontemps du Médoc. An organisation he was familiar with since childhood. It was created by Bordeaux vineyards and merchants after the war to help revive the fortunes of the region. His father was originally ‘Vinothécaire’, in charge of managing the cellar of donated wines used for promotions, then Grand Chancellor. Upon arrival, Jean-Michel became a member, rising to Grand Master. He spent over 35 years in the Commanderie and travelled across the world, taking the wines of Bordeaux with them. From the US, across Europe, Russia and Asia, opening up markets for Bordeaux, including China in the early 1990s. As he went he encouraged visitors to come back to visit Bordeaux.
Wine Tourism and the village de Bages
To be able to welcome visitors he transformed the Village of Bages, on the outskirts of Pauillac, into a wine tourism hub.
This hamlet has always been at the heart of the family estate. It all started in the 17th century when brothers started buying up vines around the hamlet. It takes its name comes from Irishman Thomas Lynch who acquired, what had then become Domaine de Bages, through marriage. Jean-Michel’s grandfather, Jean-Charles, bought the property after the 1929 crash.
As the family bought surrounding plots of vines, houses in the hamlet often came with them and they ended up owning more or less the whole hamlet. When Jean-Michel moved back, the family made their home there, although many of the buildings were derelict. Slowly, they renovated the village saving the buildings they could. They created a central square that is now home to a shop, a butcher, a bicycle rental, a wine school and at one point, a baker – a nod to the family history as bakers in Pauillac. At the centre is the hugely popular restaurant Café Lavinal, an important stop off for anyone on a Médoc wine tour.
As well as Opening Lynch Bages for visits and tastings, he converted the run down 17th century Chateau Cordeillan Bages, into a 28 room Relais and Château hotel, and for a time, a Michelin starred restaurant under Thierry Marx and then Jean-Luc Rocha. Château de Ormes de Pez in Saint Estèphe is also a successful guest house.
Alongside visits and tastings at the château, the Lynch-Bages & Cie tourism offer in the village includes tasting classes and food and wine matching experiences at their wine school, contemporary art exhibitions in the perfectly preserved 19th century two-storied vat rooms, the Bages Bazaar shop that sell so much more than wine, a local butcher and deli and the unique Viniv where guests can create their very own Bordeaux wine in partnership with the Lynch Bages wine making team.
His son Jean-Charles has been running the family business since 2006, when he analysed the 90 ha of Château Lynch Bages, finding 80 distinct plots. This inspired an ambitious new cellar design with architect Chien Chung (Didi) Pei to allow them to vinify these plots separately. The result is an impressive 11 000 M2 glass building, as befits the architect of the Louvre pyramid. The perfectly preserved 19th century vat house is right next door to this brand-new cellar linking the past to the present.
Wine innovation, hospitality and a warm welcome introduced to the Médoc by Jean-Michel continues to be part of the Cazes philosophy and many properties have followed their example.
If you would like to learn more about the remarkable life of Jean-Michel Cazes, his autobiography was published in French in 2022 as ‘Bordeaux Grands Crus : la reconquête’. This year it was published, in translation by Jane Anson, as ‘Bordeaux to the Stars’ by Académie du Vin Library.
Wendy Narby
Photos Credits : ©JaneAnson