Jean-Nicolas Meo

Cofounder and Winemaker: As the owner and winemaker of the Cote D ‘Ors famed Domaine Meo-Camuzet, Jean-Nicolas Meo’s path to Oregon’s Willamette Valley first went through the great grands crus of Burgundy, where he spent nearly 30 years making wines from legendary vineyards like Richebourg, Clos de Vougeot, Corton Clos Rognet and Echezeaux. In 2012, inspired by a three-decade interest in the quality and potential of Oregon’s Pinot Noirs, Jean-Nicolas partnered with his longtime friend, Jay Boberg, to found Nicolas-Jay in the Willamette Valley. At Nicolas-Jay, Jean-Nicolas applies insights gained from his experience making Pinot Noirs from some of the world’s greatest winegrowing sites to craft exciting and elegant Pinot Noirs that authentically show the terroir of the Willamette Valley, and some of its very finest vineyards.

Jean-Nicolas began his career in wine in 1989, when he left Paris and moved to Burgundy to guide his family’s domaine. As many of the metayeurs (sharecroppers) who leased his family’s coveted vineyard land began to retire, Jean-Nicolas made the decision to slowly start reclaiming the land for Meo-Camuzet’s own bottlings. This was a bold new direction for a domaine that had long been overseen from Paris. Finding that he enjoyed the rhythms of country life, and the challenges of running a winery, Jean-Nicolas began a period of intense modernization. To help during this period of transition, Jean-Nicolas was mentored by the great Henri Jayer, who had been making wines from some of Meo-Camuzet’s finest parcels for decades. From Henri, Jean-Nicolas gained a deep and lasting love of wine, and an appreciation for the more sensual side of Pinot Noir. At the same time, he began defining his own signature style, with an emphasis on depth, refinement and impeccable balance – a style that has catapulted Meo-Camuzet to fame, and earned Jean-Nicolas respect as one of the finest Pinot Noir winemakers in the world.

Though Jean-Nicolas has deep roots in Burgundy, he has long nurtured an appreciation for Pinot Noirs from other parts of the world – most notably for the wines of Oregon, which he first discovered while attending the International Pinot Noir Celebration in Willamette Valley in 1991. There, Jean-Nicolas met many of the region’s early pioneers, and had an opportunity to explore the remarkable potential of its wines. “I loved the valley’s Burgundy-like charm and mentality, with its dedicated farmers, and small, family-run wineries committed to making wines of great character,” says Jean-Nicolas.