DESSERT WINE

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

Pale lemon-gold colored, the 2018 Carmes de Rieussec is a little youthfully mute to begin, offering glimpses at lemon meringue pie, lime cordial and beeswax scents with touches of baking bread and marzipan. The palate is appealingly rich and packed with citrus and spice layers, finishing long and honeyed. LISA PEROTTI-BROWN, Wine advocate

The 2018 is another top notch release for this beloved wine. It's so perky and fun, the overall feeling is one of playfulness and excitement rather than the often imposing nature of its big brother. It is both thirst slacking and simultaneously moreish. Lashings of tingly minerality and fresh acidity are what really set this up as a delight to drink. Lovely right now with a lighter dessert or some cheese but I would be tempted to put it away for a handful of years, I think that energy and buoyancy will hold in in good stead for a while to come. A really pure and attractive Carmes. ROSCOE

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

This wine, his Carte d'Or is a blend of sites which he thoughtfully keeps fresh by not burdening it with too much sugar (its sweetness is balanced with a zesty line of acidity). It's a delightful and lively rendition that will age well or give pleasure right now.

'The palate shows a very appealing concentration, with white peach, white pear flesh, a delightfully match-sticky freshness and also a beautifully bright acidity…this has very nice fruit and tension, but also a delicious minerally frame for it all. Very good indeed.' thewinedoctor.com

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

EP Minimum order 6 half bottles
Owned by the impressionable Baly family, a classic of the region - the model of elegance and balanced sweetness. -Tom Portet
 
Revue de Vins de France 95-97
Andrew Caillard, MW 94
Medium colour. Attractive lemon curd, grapefruit honey aromas and flavours, fine crisp acidity. Chalky textures. Finishes long and sweet with very fresh run of acidity..

Forteto della Luja Brachetto Passito Pian dei Sogni, undoubtedly the best Brachetto Passito wine made in Italy, magically combining not just sweetness and lusciousness but also grace and refinement, not to mention uncommon depth, length and complexity. IAN D'AGATA, ww.vinousmedia.com

Sauternes (1st Growth)

Denis Dubourdieu's Barsac cru has an attractive bouquet with subtle notes of cooking apple, pear and lime-flower, all with very fine delineation. The palate displays good weight and a fine thread of acidity, lending tension and poise that leads to a taut finish, showing good botrytis levels for the vintage. With its trademark minerality in place, this Doisy-Daene comes highly recommended.  NEAL MARTIN

Slightly less sweet than the 09, but still just as highly-strung with a healthy acidity and above all a very vibrant tone of fresh fruit running through the sweetness. A classic Doisy Daene, all natural and tensile, that will be lovely young and probably great old.  BILL BLATCH

PLEASE NOTE THIS WINE IS OFFERED EN PRIMEUR AND YOU WILL BE CHARGED THE FINAL (NOW) PRICE LESS 20% WITH THE BALANCE DUE WHEN THE WINE ARRIVES IN 2013.

Sauternes 1er Cru Classé
24 BOTTLES remain at time of offer
The 2017 Rieussec captures the natural intensity of the year, while also remaining faithful to the house style that is now favored by the estate. A high percentage of Sauvignon Blanc (17%) adds freshness and lift to the passionfruit, pineapple, mint and lemon confit flavors. Beautifully harmonious and persistent in the glass, the 2017 has so much to offer. In this tasting, it is simply tremendous. (94-97) ANTONIO GALLONI

The 2017 Rieussec was affected by the frost, losing around 15% of the production although, it was more located in parcels that are designated for the dry white R de Rieussec. Eric Kohler told me that it was a relatively rapid picking. It has around 125gm/L residual sugar. It has a clean but slightly distant bouquet, does not really exude the richness that you expect from Sauternes. The palate is medium-bodied and more promising than the nose: a viscous opening, quite spicy and slightly Auslese in style. The acidity is well balanced and it becomes increasingly lively towards the lychee and fennel-tinged finish, as if compensating for the nose. (92-94) NEAL MARTIN

Sauternes (1st Growth)

This has quite a bit of sulphur on the nose at first, but it clears with aeration. It remains tightly-coiled, with lemon, honey, apricot and limestone, demonstrating fine minerality. The palate has great tension on the entry, quite spicy and nutty in style, with a vibrant, zesty finish. This is an exuberant Sigalas-Rabaud with great potential. NEAL MARTIN

A very full wine, with good but unobtrusive sweetness and above all a great brightness / freshness to the middle-fruit that, together with the just-enough acidity, take this remarkably full yet pure wine through to a very fine, minty, tight finish. This is clearly about to become the closest recent vintage to this château's golden days of the 60s. It reminds me of a latter day version of the great 67.  BILL BLATCH

 

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

BARSAC

I tasted the 2016 Climens from four separate lots identified by location, harvest dates, alcohol, residual sugar and the percentage each lot represents of the harvest. The four wines were remarkably different. The Nord was both plush and tropical-leaning, yet with notable freshness, while the Sud managed to be both deep and also light on its feet. I found the Ouest to be the most precise and aromatically lifted of the samples, while the Est was the most concentrated. A simple, impromptu blend of the four lots suggests the 2016 Climens is shaping up to be a magnificent Barsac. The interplay of the various components is quite remarkable. ANTONIO GALLONI

The 2016 Climens was tasted from the 12 different lots that will go into the Grand Vin, with some selected from the Deuxième Vin, Cyprès de Climens. As usual, I had to assemble them in my mind and relate commonalities, though at a négoçiant a week later I re-tasted four preprepared micro-blends. I found much elegance this year. It is not a powerful Climens in the making and even with the higher alcohol lots that reached 14.9%, you could not feel any warmth and the wines maintained the tension. Some lots displayed saline finishes, perhaps a little more than usual. Perhaps the most important factor was just how "Barsac" they all tasted. Sometimes some lots can taste more Sauternes-like in style, but not this year. NEAL MARTIN

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!

Sauternes

The 2016 Rieussec has an elegant bouquet of pure honeysuckle, orange pith, peach and light minerally aromas. The palate is well balanced with fine precision and pleasant fatness, featuring white peach and almond-infused, honeyed fruit. A touch of vanilla emerges toward the finish. This was a barrel sample due to be bottled in January 2019, though it was virtually the finished wine (93) NEAL MARTIN

The 2008 Chateau Coutet has a very extroverted bouquet, with notes of tangerine, pink grapefruit, guava and pear drop, showing fine definition. The palate is well-balanced, with Coutet's trademark citrus-driven entry segueing into a pure honeyed, mineral-rich finish that is linear, but very composed at this stage. This will need time, but it already displays that trademark race and tension that are the hallmarks of a great Coutet. Drink now-2040. NEAL MARTIN

The Clos Jebsal is the only lieu-dit in Turckheim where the blue clay and gypsum can be found, but it is also the only vineyard name that makes a direct reference to the soil type. 'Jebsal' literally means 'where there is gypsum'! The marl soil is deep and posses a big water retention capacity. This constant humidity in the soil not only allows the vines to resist severe droughts through hot summers, but also allows the development of noble rot with regular exemplarity. Only adverse climate in October could stop the production of these later harvested wines. The Clos is exposed to the south, on a slope from moderate to very steep, helping natural drainage, important on such geology. The grapes ripened perfectly in 2017. The drier condition didn't allow for a huge botrytis development, but a selection was also possible on top of this Vendange Tardive. The maturity is very close to the 12% + 5% potential in residual sugar which seems to be the ideal balance in terms of sweet wine for this vineyard.

Intense gold yellow colour. The nose of the 2017 vintage is pure, showing elegant noble rot character, yet quite discreet, with complex white fruits expression (pear, peach,..) and honey, limetree and acacia flowers… The palate is ample, showing great aromatic ripe character. The texture is round, velvety, soft, almost like the soft touch of the clay in the soil. This high ripeness wine already exhibits a lot of potential in its youth. Of course, full expression will take many years to show up… ZIND HUMBRECHT

SAUTERNES

The 2016 Suduiraut is fabulous. Crème br?lée, passion fruit, tangerine peel and exotic floral notes all race out of the glass. I marvel at how Suduiraut can deliver so much flavor intensity and yet remain so gracious and classy. The 140 grams of residual sugar are very well integrated. This is such a gorgeous wine. (97) ANTONIO GALLONI

BARSAC

I tasted the 2016 Climens from four separate lots identified by location, harvest dates, alcohol, residual sugar and the percentage each lot represents of the harvest. The four wines were remarkably different. The Nord was both plush and tropical-leaning, yet with notable freshness, while the Sud managed to be both deep and also light on its feet. I found the Ouest to be the most precise and aromatically lifted of the samples, while the Est was the most concentrated. A simple, impromptu blend of the four lots suggests the 2016 Climens is shaping up to be a magnificent Barsac. The interplay of the various components is quite remarkable. ANTONIO GALLONI

The 2016 Climens was tasted from the 12 different lots that will go into the Grand Vin, with some selected from the Deuxième Vin, Cyprès de Climens. As usual, I had to assemble them in my mind and relate commonalities, though at a négoçiant a week later I re-tasted four preprepared micro-blends. I found much elegance this year. It is not a powerful Climens in the making and even with the higher alcohol lots that reached 14.9%, you could not feel any warmth and the wines maintained the tension. Some lots displayed saline finishes, perhaps a little more than usual. Perhaps the most important factor was just how "Barsac" they all tasted. Sometimes some lots can taste more Sauternes-like in style, but not this year. NEAL MARTIN

 

Sauternes
12 BOTTLES remain at time of offer
Just as impressive as it was in barrel, the 2017 Suduiraut is positively dazzling. Pineapple, orange peel, crême brulée, white flowers, honey, apricot and hazelnut are some of the many nuances that develop in the glass. Rich and heady, yet also wonderfully vibrant, the 2017 is developing into a stunning Suduiraut. The 140 grams of residual sugar is very nicely integrated. Only the fruit from the last two picks made it into the Grand Vin. (97) ANTONIO GALLONI

The 2017 Suduiraut was picked via three tries, with 75% of the crop picked in the second tries from 4 to 15 October. The harvest finished on 19 October, one of the last in Sauternes and after Yquem. “We were touched by the frost but not in the top terroir,” winemaker Pierre Montegut told me. It is matured in around 50% new oak. It has an expressive, harmonious bouquet with dried honey, white flowers and a touch of gripe water (a children’s medicine for those in the United States. I have been informed there is no equivalent on the other side of the Atlantic). The palate is well balanced with a viscous opening, well judged acidity, plenty of botrytized fruit with a long, lightly spiced finish that feels so fresh and vital. This is a superb Suduiraut from Pierre Montegut and his team. (94-96) NEAL MARTIN

 

The 2005 Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese offers dusty, smoky notes of advanced botrytis on the nose, along with grilled pineapple, apricot preserves, lemon, and honey, all four of which elements vie for attention on the palate. Pure, refined and with rapier-sharp length, this nevertheless is not yet by any means organized or clear enough to permit a good view of what sort of personality lies in the future. For now one can only say that it may take many years for the personality of this wine to be clearly visible, but it is virtually certain that this will be a 50-year wine. Along with the sheer density of Richter’s 2005 vintage Trockenbeerenauslesen goes, in each instance, a concentration of acidity to over twelve grams DAVID SCHILDKNECHT, Wine Advocate

PRE ARRIVAL - DUE EARLY 2022
Containing 135 grams per liter of residual sugar, the pale lemon-gold colored 2016 d'Yquem leaps from the glass with honeyed apricots, pineapple, green mango, crushed rocks, candied ginger, coriander seed and citrus peel with hints of orange blossom. The palate is very tightly wound, vibrant and refreshing with layer upon layer of minerals and spices, finishing with epic poise and persistence. (98+) WINE ADVOCATE

PRE ARRIVAL - DUE EARLY 2022
Tasted single blind against its peers. Under blind conditions, the Yquem 2007 shines like a diamond. Nevertheless, it is initially rather taciturn on the nose, eventually opening up beautifully with touches of lemon curd, Mirabelle, and clear honey. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine definition and there seems to be a great deal of energy and vigor dispensed for your pleasure. There is such race and nervosity, and then that finish just purrs with harmony and focus. This Yquem feels just so alive and vivacious, yet there is an effortless quality here that is unmatched by its peers. Tasted January 2011. (98) NEAL MARTIN

PRE ARRIVAL - DUE EARLY 2022
While no surprise here, this wine, which will be bottled in 2009, is certainly this estate's greatest effort since their 2001. It completely outclasses everything from the appellation, but even when you're number one, that's often hard to do. This light gold wine offers up a sensational smorgasbord of aromas including huge honeyed pineapple and other caramelized tropical fruit flavors, massive richness, and a viscous, unctuous texture with the oak beautifully integrated. The wine has enough acidity to buttress its full-bodied mouthfeel, but this is not by any means the sweetest or most alcoholic of the d'Yquems I have tasted. In fact, in the range of d'Yquems, this is a powerful wine, but it is one built more on finesse and elegance, a la the 1988. Nevertheless, this wine will prove to have 50+ years of longevity. The finish, the mid-palate, the sensation of looking at a skyscraper of Semillon with a small dosage of Sauvignon, is impressive. Like all of the sweet wines of Barsac and Sauternes, one can drink this young, but the nuances and complexities really don't emerge for at least a decade, especially in the case of a wine such as this. Bravo! (98+) WINE ADVOCATE

PRE ARRIVAL - DUE EARLY 2022
Firstly, you notice the color, which is a touch deeper than recent vintages at this stage. The bouquet is quite honeyed and rich for Yquem at this early juncture, with subtle scents of peach skin, white flowers, and a puff of chalk and frangipane. The palate is viscous on the entry, all about the texture at first, coating the mouth with luscious botrytized fruit. There are touches of Seville orange marmalade, fresh apricot, a hint of spice and passion fruit. This is imbued with impressive depth and weight, perhaps an Yquem that is determined to make an impression after last year-s absence. (97) WINE ADVOCATE

The nose opens with very pure notes of freshly sliced oranges, yuzu and lemon barley water with hints of white pepper, fresh ginger and lime cordial. The incredibly rich, unctuous sweetness (148 grams per liter of residual sugar) is beautifully marbled with bright, vivacious citrus fruit and spice flavors, while lifted by well-knit freshness, and it finishes with epic length and great depth. (99) WINE ADVOCATE

Picked predominantly over 10 days from October 14, the 2010 d'Yquem has 141gms/L residual sugar and pH 3.80. It is a slow-burner, the nose understated at first but unfurling with each passing moment with subtle scents of freshly sliced apricots, Clementine, clear honey and white flowers. There is an underlying minerality that really defines this bouquet. The palate is similar to the nose, revealing hidden facets with almost each swirl of the glass - orange blossom, limestone, white peach and honeysuckle. This is such a precise d'Yquem; it is after you have swallowed the wine that one comprehends just how brilliant it is. (98+) WINE ADVOCATE

The 2014 d'Yquem is exceptionally beautiful for so many reasons, not the least of which is a striking juxtaposition of bright, floral/citrus notes of the early picks, before botrytis had set in, with richer, more tropical-inflected nuances that resulted from the later picks, where rot had developed. In other words, the 2014 is a wine of sublime contrasts, which is one of the qualities that often define the truly great wines. Lemon peel, coconut, jasmine, peach jam and brioche are some of the aromas and flavors that are present today, but above all else it is the wine's textural finesse that elevates the 2014 into the stratosphere. The precise, understated finish is striking. There isn't much else to say except that the 2014 Yquem is a real stunner. ANTONIO GALLONI

The Château Yquem 2014 was picked over 9 weeks this year, with one-quarter of the grapes picked prior to 15 September. It delivers 134 grams per liter residual sugar and 7.3 grams per liter tartaric acid, with a pH 3.60. It has a captivating bouquet (I know...I know...what else were you expecting) But it entrances with its pure, wild honey notes mixed with almond and white chocolate scents, bestowed with beguiling delineation and focus. The palate is very poised with the acidity nigh on perfect. Occasionally an Yquem only reveals its components parts at this early juncture, necessitates conjecture. However the 2014 has a sense of harmony and completeness already, as if the élevage is merely there to usher it on to its finished state. There is undeniably great depth here, perhaps less conspicuous than other vintages because of that silver thread of acidity: notes of lemon sherbet, orange zest, shaved ginger and again, a few "flakes' of white chocolate. It is extremely long with tenderness rather than power on the finish. It's not quite up there in the rarefied heights of say, the 2001 or 2009, but it is what we call in the trade, "the business." NEAL MARTIN

Everything was very early, although they are always a week earlier at Yquem. Harvest started on 8 October with grapes slightly dried as well as botrytised. These grapes gave great freshness. They picked up until 28 October thanks to at least three botrytis infections. 15% passerillé grapes. TA 4.9 g/l (= 7.5 g/l expressed as tartaric) – a record. RS 135 g/l.

Bright gold with a green note. Intense freshness on the nose. Fabulous nose of richness and freshness. The residual sugar is not high but the balance is great. Lime and pears and great richness and almost like a fruit juice, it’s so refreshing yet dense and sweet. JANCIS ROBINSON