Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s magical cooking has been wowing the critics—and his many satisfied diners—at his three Michelin-starred New York restaurant since 1998. Vongerichten’s culinary style is classical but gently innovative in its knitting together of international influences—as dishes such as turbot, ruby grapefruit, silken herbs, and radishes; or butter-poached lobster, saffron tapioca, lemongrass and passion fruit, illustrate. The wine list is no less beautifully put together, a collection of classical French wine threaded with interesting international choices that, as the judges at the World’s Best Wine Lists 2015 said, is “Incredibly thorough and exciting just to read through.”
Among the many splendours housed in the Jean-Georges cellar at the time of judging, a “celebration” of 1982, with bottles from all the most prestigious châteaux, was especially notable. That, however, is but a small part of the fine and rare Bordeaux list. The rising stars and established greats of Burgundy, California, and Champagne are no less well represented, and the Rhône, Germany, and Alsace are covered in detail, while the Jean-Georges list is completed with a number of intelligent choices from Greece, Portugal, New Zealand, and Spain.