Sauternes

With vineyards bordering those of the fabled Ch. d’Yquem, this 16th century property has produced increasingly impressive and refined wines since AXA Millésimes took over in 1992, particularly so under the talented Christian Seely.

This has a very elegant, enticing nose, but on the palate the flavours explode with exuberance. The power is never allowed to become clumsy here, with multiple layers of citrus fruit, marmalade and plump, ripe peaches ascending to an extremely long finish supported by zesty acidity. This wonderful Sauternes has a great future ahead of it.

Golden in colour and dispalying enticing honey, vanilla, andcitrus characters on the palate. Harmonious and well-balanced.

An outstanding wine in 1997, big powerful with flavours of honey and raisins. A truly exceptional Sauternes.

Highly extracted, muscular wine that is beginning to open out to reveal its luscious characteristics. In youth the wines of this chateau are often confused with those of Yquem. A wine with a long life ahead.

Tasted twice, and both times impressing with its finesse. A wonderful bouquet of honeyed orange zest and acacia, followed by great elegance on the palate with a laser-sharp sense of natural sweetness. Purity again the hallmark, as seems to be the case this year with the Sauternes.

Wow, what a wine! I totally agree with where the Chateau are coming from as I had the same feeling when I tasted the 2001. Definitely worth the wait but all we need to know is the price! So complex and perfectly layered, tropical fruits with the signature marmalade on the finish you really could drink this now. If you have this in the cellar and can be patient then I suspect you will be very happy in about 40 years or if you’re impatient don’t worry, you won’t be disappointed.
Ben Upjohn - Fine Wine Sales Manager 

The long awaited 2011 release certainly doesn’t disappoint and draws inevitable comparison to their faultless 2001. Wondrous flavours; pineapple, peach, mango, orange zest, honey, ginger and blossom. Voluptuous across the palate, multi layered but it is the balance and finesse which is simply remarkable. Precise and fresh, somehow ‘light on its feet’. An ethereal d’Yquem for which the word finesse could have been created. A long future awaits....
Martyn Rolph - Private Account Manager


In putting forward our notes on Yquem I can do little better than quote the charming, highly talented winemaker at the property, Sandrine Garbay, who told us that “ it was wonderful year for Sauternes with perfect autumnal conditions for botrytis, or noble rot. Acidities are on the low side but there is a great freshness and purity to the wine”.

Little to add, really, but we’ll have a go. The bouquet is very clean and appealing, with notes of stone fruit such as apricot and peach along with some citrus zest. On the palate the sweetness is crystalline and pure, not remotely cloying, and the finish is again wonderfully fresh and enticing. A wine that will come round quite early, I feel, and despite its apparent low acidity it does not feel at all heavy or unbalanced. This was the first Sauternes we tasted but subsequent experience indicated that this will be a year of great finesse and elegance for these wines.

Rieussec is always such a benchmark Sauternes and seems to deliver reliably year in, year out. The bouquet is more opulent than some, with classic aromas of ripe stone fruit allied to a honied richness, while the palate has a creamy texture and lovely complexity and intensity.

The finish is long and balanced and the overall impression is of a deeply rewarding wine. Still, one can feel a great sense of freshness, which seems to me to becoming one of the hallmarks, and a very attractive one, too, of this vintage in Sauternes.

Rieussec is always such a benchmark Sauternes and seems to deliver reliably year in, year out. A rewarding wine, this would be a fine addition to any cellar.

Intense and luscious with ripe notes of orange peel and pineapple, the 2009 Suduiraut is our favourite Sauternes of the vintage. The palate has a wonderful depth of rich citrus and passionfruit flavours whilst a vanilla cream note adds to the broad, lush, honeyed mouthfeel. Crisp acidity adds freshness, making this an absolutely delicious Sauternes.

Breathtakingly complex and vibrant nose of lightly burnt creme brulee, white peaches, apricots, mustard seed and gorgeous light new oak heralds the way to the most magnificent mouth-filling essence. With the texture of melted butter and a perfect balance of precision acidity it feels as fresh,zingy and exciting as any wine you can imagine with a concentration you cant imagine. Total nectar. If the nose and the palate aren't enough to blow you away the 30 minute (at least) after taste is ethereal.
Simon Staples - Berrys' Sales Director

Fine and with lovely elegance, the 2009 Ch.Guiraud is a beautifully harmonious wine. Intense, ripe pineapple mingles with lemon and lime marmalade notes of botrytis whilst a seam of wet-stone minerality adds freshness. This, in conjunction with the crisp acidity, makes this a very sophisticated Sauternes.

This rightly popular wine from the owners of First Growth Lafite-Rothschild is as engaging and sumptuous as ever in 2007. The soft, dense, rich texture is classic Rieussec while the level of sweetness is more balanced than in some previous vintages. A rich, precise, apricot tart nose is followed by an incredibly concentrated, succulent, creamy palate with apple, caramel and overripe peach, relatively low acidity and a long, intense finish. This hedonistic Rieussec may be a smidgen behind their 2005 and 2001 in quality but it is nevertheless an immensely impressive effort.

Rich, sweet and exotic, Ch. Guiraud has a tremendous nose and excellently balanced. All component parts joyously combine to create a wine that is immensely satisfying. 

Utter liquid decadence! Honestly, it feels “naughty” trying this magnificent wine. Heady aromas of white peach, passion fruit, pineapple and mango all interwoven with clotted cream. Somebody bring me a spoon! Massive concentration with a tangible weight to it none of the other Sauternes we tried had apart from D’Yquem (our top wine of the vintage) but it will be approximately a 10^th of the price. I think in the last 50 years 2013 will be regarded just below 1967 and 2001 but above 2007/2005/2003 etc I made a huge mistake in 2001 by not buying enough. I wont make the same mistake twice. Halves for the next 5 years, bottles for 5 to 10 years and Mags for the next generation. Nectar of the Gods!
Simon Staples - Asia Sales Director

According to the team at d'Yquem, the 2007 vintage reminded them of a combination of 1997, the legendary 1967 and the stylish 1988. The wealth of flavour on the palate is seamless and completely mouthfilling without yet showing the glorious detail to come, while the finish is sensationally long. This has lived up to every expectation in 2007 and will surely be considered as one of the truly great d'Yquems of all time.

While not as majestic as the ethereal 2001 it's going to give it a run for its money! ... and it's a lot of money make no mistake. The '07 is expensive but we feel honour bound to offer it as this is one of the greatest wines in the world.