Wine on the Radio - June 4, 2004

Sauternes and Barsac                Recommendations

Have you got a sweet tooth?  Is your favorite question, "What's for dessert?"

Well if so we're here to offer up a luscious dessert for you . . . the sweet wines of Bordeaux.  

Two areas in Bordeaux, Sauternes and Barsac, bring us really special wines whose unique style is due to a quirk of Mother Nature.  

We owe their specialness to a fungus!  Yep the mold called Botrytis can grow on the grape under certain weather conditions and pierce the skin.  Sounds bad but its really good because when some of the liquid evaporates, what's left becomes highly concentrated with sugars, acids and flavor.  

The berries are hand picked and nurtured with care and the wines are sweet and very intense.

Imagine this taste . . . it's like dried apricots or candied oranges dipped in golden honey.   They can age almost forever and become more dense and yummy with each year.  

So next time someone asks. "What's for dessert?" treat them to the lush liquid of Sauternes or Barsac.  

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Sauternes and Barsac - Our Picks and Recommendations . . . All Prices Approximate

Ch. Rieussec 1999 Sauternes (half-bottle) $22
Bordeaux, France
Winemaker's Notes
"Explosive aromas of apricot, peach, minerals, creme caramel, grilled nuts and spices, along with cooler hints of licorice and menthol. Thick, sweet and chewy with extract; an impressively mouthfilling wine with lovely framing acidity"

2002 Ch. Doisy-Vedrines Barsac "Sauterne" $26
WA 89-91 points, This is a sweet, full-bodied, fat, concentrated, intense effort

1999 Baron Philippe de Rothschild Sauternes $28
The nose is full with very rich candied fruit aromas. A fine texture on the palate combining the refinement of honey, dried apricot and roasted flavors

Ch. d'Yquem 1997 Sauternes $290
Bordeaux, France
Winemaker's Notes
"A sensational Yquem, 1997 may be this estate's finest effort since 1990 (although I would not discount the 1996 turning out to be nearly as good). The 1997's light gold color is accompanied a gorgeous perfume of caramel, honeysuckle, peach, apricot, and smoky wood. Full-bodied and unctuously-textured, with good underlying acidity as well as loads of sweetness and glycerin, it looks to be a great vintage for this renowned Sauternes estate. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2055. Note: Yquem spends 42 months in 100% new oak. No cask tasting is permitted, and the wine is not released until 5 years after the vintage. For example, the 1998 will be released some time in 2003; the 2001 will not be released until 2006." -Wine Advocate