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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 95.1 pts. and median of 95 pts. in 144 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by BadOyster on 4/18/2024 & rated 97 points: Neal Martin nailed this one. A little rambunctious in the beginning - felt disjointed - but as soon as it kicks into gear the swathe of gingery-peppery notes on top of all the fruits mentioned by NM carries through the finish seemingly forever. Lovely. (230 views) | | | Tasted by booksmiths on 3/11/2024 & rated 96 points: From half bottle.
Nectar of the Gods. (540 views) | | | Tasted by Jeff Leve on 1/13/2024 & rated 96 points: A gorgeous d'Yquem that is in the perfect place. It is ready to go, and yet, it has decades of life to go allowing you to enjoy its roasted apricots, honey-coated oranges, pineapple, ginger, flowers, and spices. The bite of acidity is the perfect balance for its layers of sweet, ripe, tropical fruits. Drink from 2024-2045. (2241 views) | | | Tasted by acyso on 12/5/2023: Good vintages of Yquem (Chicago, IL): I don't think this was a proper showing of this wine -- it came off a little dirty and musty, though the apricot jam tones were pretty prominent here. That dirtiness really detracted from my enjoyment of this bottle; it was just too distracting from the other (quite nice) elements of this vintage. (1903 views) | | | Tasted by rocknroller on 10/19/2023 & rated 96 points: Judgement of Eagan (Jason P's, St. Paul, MN): Deep gold/amber color. Drank a glass over 45 minutes. Wow, gorgeous! Ripe, brown sugar, orange marmalade, orange peel nose. The palate shows orange, orange marmalade, pineapple, apricot, honeyed and viscous, ripe and round, amazing spice notes with the perfect inflection of the spice to balance the sweetness and fruit, full bodied and long. Outstanding and classy. (1692 views) | | | Tasted by WineBurrowingWombat on 10/19/2023 & rated 95 points: Cracking the whip; 10/16/2023-10/23/2023 (Eagan, MN): N: Deep and golden honey with a slightly dulled character. Notes of a soft, fuzzy and ripe outer layer of an apricot, and a beautiful chrysanthemum tea note with crushed stones.
P: Intense and deep dark honey, bitter wax, dark minerals, really intense and heavily ripened fruits without any kind of rot or molding. The dark yellow fruits have a dark, honied and candied characteristic to them.
Awesome treat at the end after an intense night of faceoffs! (1882 views) | | | Tasted by I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine on 10/19/2023 & rated 96 points: Judgement of Eagan Wine Tasting (Jason's House): PnP....this wine was a treat! A perfect ending to an awesome night! It has been over 20 years since I last had this wine, and it is still stellar! The wine showed impeccable balance, as expected, between sweetness and acidity. I will admit, I expected much more caramel, which was present, but not dominant. However, there was a burnt sugar taste present, along with orange marmalade, some dried apricot and some toasted coconut. A very flavorful, well balanced wine, and a super way to end a stellar tasting! Easy 96 for me! I gave the rest of the bottle to a friend and attendee as this was his birth year wine! (1718 views) | | | Tasted by galewskj on 10/19/2023: Judgement of Eagan (Jason's house): A very small glass at the end of a tasting. Maybe my palate was shot, but this seemed old and tired. Petrol, lacquer, almost no sweetness left. (1280 views) | | | Tasted by winecoffee on 7/14/2023 & rated 95 points: Wow! Crisp dark golden color. Nose of caramelized orange peel. Palate had crisp orange marmalade with a faint burnt touch. Beautiful wine! (1165 views) | | | Tasted by jlgnml on 4/22/2023 & rated 96 points: Jamie and Linda’s Excellent Wine Adventure (Country Club of Florida): Served at the beginning of the meal with Foie Gras and then at the end with a fruit based dish. The difference between the courses was the development and coming out of a cocoon the wine had. The change was noticeable from some sharpness on the first glass and a smooth finish, gripping the palate as you swallowed it. Drink or hold. (1490 views) | | | Tasted by acyso on 4/1/2023 & rated 95 points: Heater week; 3/26/2023-4/3/2023 (Chicago, IL): Fairly dark in colour. The nose is classic Yquem -- coconut, marmalade, burnt sugar, stone fruit, all that good stuff. There's plenty of botrytis spice to boot. On the palate, this has a slight burnished quality to it, and while this is fairly sweet for a wine this old, it doesn't feel unbalanced. As always, that slight Sauternes bitterness helps balance out all the rest of the components here, and there's actually some nice acidity to balance everything else too. Maybe not at the same level as the 1975, but definitely up there in the pantheon of great Yquem vintages. (2498 views) | | | Tasted by Jerrywine on 2/24/2023 & rated 95 points: WOW, this was a 47 year old, half bottle with mid-shoulder fill and a group of good friends who enjoy wine so it was its time. The only issue was it was at the end of the meal and a lot of excellent wines before it but: loaded with exotic fruits way too plentiful to mention but will give it a shot with passion fruit, mango, pineapple and then a lot of honey and caramel. The acid was there so not cloying at all. Not sure how much I paid and I believe my wife got this and others for a birthday about 40 or so years ago. (1671 views) | | | Tasted by sh6k on 1/26/2023 & rated 92 points: Worst Yquem of the night (out of 6 — so a tough compare) — feels somewhat past its prime with more prunes and cooked fruit than brightness. Still complex and delicious and was likely great 10 years ago. Based on the bottle I had 2 years ago, I’m going to say this bottle wasn’t stored well.
Rankings for the night:
1. 1946 (best overall)
2. 2010 (most delicious)
3. 1967 (most interesting)
4. 2015
5. 2005
6. 1976 (1835 views) | | | Tasted by S1 on 11/2/2022: Charleston Offlineorama VII; 11/2/2022-11/6/2022 (Various locations): Magical. Very ripe Yquem with just enough acidity to keep it from being cloying. Lots of citrus, especially orange. (2076 views) | | | Tasted by MC2 Wines on 11/2/2022: Charleston VII; 11/2/2022-11/6/2022 (Charleston, SC (various locations)): Had with our appetizer course so for me this was paired with crudo and while I'd never thought of that combination before it worked quite well. The dish had some kumquat which pulled out more of the citrus flavors in the wine. One of the extra rich and unctuous versions of d'Yquem. A small pour was perfect. (2037 views) | | | Tasted by jlgnml on 9/5/2022 & rated 98 points: We were doing a cellar count and this btl had a small leak. Standing the bottle up, the cork was floating. Opens the btl and transferred to a half bottle and secured a new cork. We drank the remainder and it was so smooth, rich and just fantastic. Hope the half btl is good in the future too. (1863 views) | | | Tasted by Cailles on 7/17/2022 & rated 94 points: Annual BYO Pre-Dinner (mostly mature Bordeauxs): No notes taken. The nose had some faulty, chemical notes. Not super clean but with quite some substance. The palate, however, showed great and in typical fashion with lots of layers, are well-knitted together, harmonious and balanced with a good acidic backbone to keep the wine light. Maybe a lot of air (this bottle was not decanted) would have helped to get rid of the chemical notes on the nose and would have improved the experience markedly (as it usually does with Yquem). 94 pts for a great performance on the palate. (3001 views) | | | Tasted by sirpat00 on 7/1/2022 & rated 95 points: Beautiful amber color. Layers of spice, savory notes and smoke, candid mixed fruit, bee wax, honey and a scent of parchment. The palate was quite fresh with-portioned acidity. A really solid and highly enjoyable Sauternes, but below-potential for the estate in my opinion. (2035 views) | | | Tasted by glou.sf on 4/22/2022 & rated 94 points: Deep nose with caramel, honey, and orange notes. Nice acidity with more caramel flavors as well as citrus. Well balanced and a nice finish. Great stuff and a real pleasure to drink, but the 86 next to it was a tough competition. (1891 views) | | | Tasted by Jeff Leve on 4/6/2022 & rated 97 points: What a treat! This is the perfect way to end the night. The non-stop layers of candied orange, caramel, creme-brulee, overripe mango, nuts, roasted pineapple, and spicy orange tea all coated with nut honey get your focus. The wine is rich, intense, and sweet, yet racy and vibrant, so everything is lifted and intense. This has entered the start of its prime-time drinking window, where it should remain for at least another 25-35-50 more years with ease. If you want to know what makes mature d'Yquem so special, this is a good place to start. (3179 views) | | | Tasted by Papies on 4/2/2022: Dinner at the Papies (The Papies, Elizabeth St, London): Base of next and bottle 3 of 3 of the same batch.
Dark in color of course , dark glossy caramel, liquid gold as only Yquem can be and albeit this not being the best representation of this noble wine ( Bottle was not the best looking) still had all the hallmarks of the class and nobility that this wine brings. Last few times we felt it was 94-98 and this time was not exception. We will not score however as one should not and must not try and put a number on what this wine is and means. We will just tip our hat and say thank you for the honor. (1943 views) | | | Tasted by fclarity on 2/19/2022 & rated 96 points: Tasted blind, this wine had a deep yellow/light gold center and yellow/clear rims. The high intensity nose showed sauteed orange, apricot, lemons, and minerals.
In the mouth, this was rich and ripe with great acidity and length.
This is certainly one of the bigger more dramatic vintages of Yquem. Outstanding as usual! (1649 views) | | | Tasted by canan on 2/12/2022 & rated 97 points: KYD #2.1: Lots of botrytis dominates the palate. Packed with apricots, peach, quince and it is also very sweet. Lots of vanilla and freshly ground coffee beans.
The sweetness is balanced nicely by a piercing and appropriate acidity that balances out the wine very nicely. Creamy caramel also comes through nicely.
Overall, an amazing and absolutely stunning wine. (1658 views) | | | Tasted by sdr on 2/5/2022 & rated 95 points: 61s at 61 (Bourbon Steak, Aventura, Florida): This bottle of ‘76 Yquem is a real beauty. You can guess from the medium saturation of the orange color that perhaps it will not be as blowsy or flamboyant as some. The usual fragrance of orange, tangerine, cinnamon, clove and honeysuckle are wonderfully harmonious and there’s a judicious acidity to frame the lavish but not overbearing fruit. Very sweet but not dripping with botrytis. It’s so fresh it seems quite a bit younger than it is. Wonderful stuff and further proof of the superior age-ability of Château d’Yquem. (1828 views) | | | Tasted by CamWheeler on 12/5/2021 & rated 93 points: SLDS Decadence 2021: Caramel and vanilla, apricot and lemon on the nose. Good texture on the palate, with lovely bright acidity to prop up the orange flavoured sweet fruit. Holding up wonderfully well and should continue to do so with good bottles. (1233 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Neal Martin
Vinous, Unrivalled/ Unequalled: Yquem 1921–2019 (Apr 2022) (4/1/2022)
(D'yquem Yquem Sweet White) Subscribe to see review text. | By Richard Hemming, MW
JancisRobinson.com (2/17/2020)
(Ch d'Yquem Sauternes White) Subscribe to see review text. | By John Kapon
Vintage Tastings, Epic European Vacation (9/6/2011)
(d’Yquem) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (9/16/2009)
(Ch d'Yquem Sauternes White) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (2/13/2008)
(Ch d'Yquem Sauternes White) Subscribe to see review text. | By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (3/13/2009)
(Château d'Yquem) Bright apricot orange color with yellow lights; tart orange, lemon preserves and lime nose with possible touch of TCA; tart orange, mineral, lime, grapefruit palate with high acidity and tight yet; long tart finish 92+ pts. 92 points |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and JancisRobinson.com and Vintage Tastings and RJonWine.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Château d'Yquem Producer website - Read more about Chateau d’Yquem
Château d’Yquem had been in the hands of Lur Saluces family from 1785 to 1997. After several years of legal controversies, caused by disagreements within Lur Saluces family, mode giant LVMH (Louis Vutton, Moët Hennesy and Château Cheval Blanc) gained majority of shares in d’Yquem in 1997, when Count Alexandre de Lur Saluces sold his shares to LVMH. He did however continue as manager of d’Yquem, according to agreement with the new owner. This changed radically in May 2004, when he retired and was replaced him with Pierre Lurton, already manager at Cheval Blanc. The latest vintages of d'Yquem conform very convincing, that Pierre Lurton has greatly succeeded to maintain d'Yquem's fantastic quality.
This property is beautifully placed at hilltop in Sauternes commune, with its 103 ha big vineyard (clay and gravel on the surface and lime stones in the subsoil), planted with 80% Semillon and 20% Sauvignon Blanc. The average age of vines is 27 years and the yield does not exceed 10 hl/ha. The wine matures for 3.5 years in new barrels. Neither chaptalisation nor other techniques, which increase sugar content in grape must, are allowed. D’Yquem is one of the very few properties in the district, to use both semi-botrytised and fully botrytised grapes for the wine, in order to have enough acidity to balance sweetness.
D’Yquem is made without any compromises and consideration whatsoever about production costs - pickers are on constant alert for 1.5-2 months, and do many picking rounds in the vineyard. Often, the amount of these rounds is double or triple, compared to how many rounds other classified properties perform in the district. Here, we have the king of Sauternes & Barsac, world’s most expensive and most demanded dessert wine, which has an enormous keeping potential (50 years+). At its best, this wine possesses a purely exceptional botrytis, enormous concentration and such a nuance-richness, which makes you speechless.France Vins de France (Office National Interprofessionnel des Vins ) | Pages Vins, Directory of French Winegrowers | French Wine (Wikipedia)
Wine Scholar Guild vintage ratings
2018 vintage: "marked by a wet spring, a superb summer and a good harvest"
2019 vintage reports
2021: "From a general standpoint, whether for white, rosé or red wines, 2021 is a year marked by quality in the Rhône Valley Vineyards. Structured, elegant, fresh and fruity will be the main keywords for this new vintage."
2022 harvest: idealwine.info | wine-searcher.comBordeaux Bordeaux Wine Guide
Vins Bordeaux (Conseil Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux)
History of Bordeaux
History of 1855 Bordeaux Classification
"2009 is all about ripeness, with wines impressively packed with ripe fruit and high alcohol levels. They are showy, in-your-face, and full of pleasure. The 2010s have the fruit and alcohol levels of the 2009s, but with a compelling freshness on the finish that balances the fruit and provides a perfect sense of structure." - Ben Nelson
"2016 is a landmark vintage in certain spots of Bordeaux and it should be remembered as one of the most inspired campaigns of the last 40-50+ years." -Jon Rimmerman
"The quality of red Bordeaux in 2016 was universally lauded – although the response to the en primeur campaign was muted. Quantity was high too, with the equivalent of 770 million bottles of wine produced. An exceptionally dry summer with cool nights eventually, thanks to mid September rain, resulted in small, thick-skinned, ripe grapes, and the wines are marked by high tannin and acidity, with superb aromatic fragrance." - Jancis Robinson
"2017 was complicated, but there are some excellent wines. Expect plenty of freshness and drinkability from wines that will offer excellent value, and others that will rival 2016 in terms of ripeness and ageability. But they are likely to be the exception not the rule, making careful selection key." - Jane Anson
"In the past, a vintage such as 2022 may have been overripe, raisined and low in acidity but 2022 had a sneaky little reservoir in its back pocket - a near perfect marriage of cool/cold/rain the previous winter and the previous vintage that literally soaked the soils (a key to why 2022 is not 2003...or 1893)." - Jon RimmermanSauternes Le Grand Crus Classés de Sauternes et Barsac 1855 (Crus Classés de Sauternes et Barsac) - Read more about Sauternes, Barsac and its wines
– Read more about the 1855 Sauternes Barsac Classification
Forty kilometres south of Bordeaux, Sauternes is an AOC that includes together 5 communes, including Barsac. For centuries, humans have been patiently learning to master this region's climate, soils and grape varieties. But Mother Nature did a good job laying the foundation. The Sauternes terroir is distinguished by a geological predisposition to gravel and pebbles that cover limestone streaked with veins of clay. In the communes of Fargues and Sauternes, a layer of hardpan (iron-oxide cemented sand) in which vines flourish can be found. The vineyards at the highest elevations and farthest from the river have the best terroirs and produce the majority of the Crus Classés, including the monumental Château Yquem.Sauternes wines are made from Sémillon (80% of vines planted) and Sauvignon (15%) grapes. A bit of Muscadelle occasionally is used to give the wines an untamed touch. Sauternes have an "aged gold" colour that is denser and darker than other dessert wines. When they age, they develop a stunning amber colour. The nose has aromas of flowers and fruit that melt together to create a bouquet of remarkable complexity and balance. The primary aromas include almond, quince, mango, pineapple, stewed peach, dried apricot and passion fruit. There are also floral notes, with touches of linden, acacia, mimosa and honeysuckle. And as is typical with Sémillon, there are also notes of beeswax, almond and hazelnut. In the mouth, Sauternes wines have a powerful style that is viscous but extremely elegant. Its strong sweetness is captivating. Finally, its aromatic finish is something that simply must be experienced.
2013 Vintage Notes:
"the extractive ratios in th[is] year are in the phenomenal range and there's ripeness/botrytis to cover two treks around the globe [...] so appealing is the immediacy of the wines. Many can be enjoyed now for their sheer joy and delicious nature. [Some] should also age" - Jon Rimmerman
2014 Vintage Notes:
"a golden vintage for Sauternes. It may not have the depth or weight of 2010, but it has some of the richness. What has set 2014 apart is the intense lime and lemon flavors that cut into any overblown cloying character and allow both the fruit and the honeyed noble rot to sing." - Wine Enthusiast |
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