The Cellar, Then and Now: Sauternes

Sauternes is a French sweet wine from the Sauternais region of the Graves section in Bordeaux. Sauternes is made from Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscadelle that have been affected by Botrytis cinerea, also known as noble rot. This causes the grapes to become partially raisined, resulting in concentrated and distinctively flavored wines.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauternes_%28wine%29

After we married, over six years ago, we were turned on to Sauternes by a friend of ours, and we will forevermore be grateful for this.  In fact, for our first (or second, we can’t recall for sure) anniversary we indulged in this beautiful bottle:

2005 Chateau Villefranche Sauternes

Rating for France-Bordeaux-Sauternes: 96 (good year)

Winery: Henri Guinabert et Fils

Type: Sweet

From: SAUTERNES, France

Variety: Semillon , Sauvignon Blanc , Muscadelle

The winery is in Villefranche Chateau Benoit Guinabert, Chateau Villefranche, 33720 Barsac, France.  It is highly ranked. One of the oldest estates in Sauternes, located on the plateau of Haut-Barsac, near the Ciron. The vineyards (Sémillon, Sauvignon and Muscadelle) has a wide variety of soils with a predominance of clay and limestone.

I remember it had a wonderful finish.

In the cellar now…and looking forward to:

Chateau Rabaud-Promis Premiere Cru Classe Sauternes 2001

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: 90-92 points

Wine Spectator: 95 points

This is a big, sweet, honeyed Sauternes with loads of fruit, but not a great deal of complexity. Light gold-colored and full-bodied, with plenty of pineapple, honeysuckle, and marmalade notes as well as a hint of caramel, there is a lot going on in this young but promising 2001. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2020.

We are holding on to this one until our 10th anniversary!

Read more: http://www.snooth.com/wine/chateau-rabaud-promis-1er-cru-classe-sauternes-2001/#ixzz21ZJh5nbp