All-sauternes dinner

Another wonderful all-sauternes dinner. It had been a few years since our last one, but the wines all showed spectacularly, the food was an excellent match, and the company was fabulous. Apologies if my notes are not as thorough as they typically are... at a dinner with 12+ wines this becomes quite challenging.

• 2007 Château Doisy-Daëne 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  (12/3/2023)

  From 375mL. Aromatic, honeyed white flowers, slight mint and herbal; balanced, sweet but balanced, elegant, white flowers; finish is medium to medium-plus. I like this more than my previous bottle from 2020. 90
  Day 3: Still nicely balanced with more tropical fruit, pineapple. Lovely sauternes, but definitely an unfair comparison with the other wines we had on the table.

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• 2009 Bedrock Wine Co. Sémillon Lachryma Montis, Botrytized Old Vine Monte Rosso Vineyard 88 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley

  (12/3/2023)

  Tasted blind. Orange marmalade, balanced, not overly alcoholic, simple on the finish but very nice! Probably one of the better examples of a botrytized wine outside of sauternes. 88

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• 2010 Château de Fargues 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  Opened the morning prior to dinner. Lovely light golden color; aromatic, honey, white fruits, peach, a hint of tropical; youthful, sweet but balanced, medium-plus acidity, great complexity, a bit of citrus grapefruit pith but not as much as in some vintages, some lemon verbena; long finish. Youthful but perfectly balanced. 94++
  Over the evening and on retaste, and in context with some other wines, this was just rocking. Complex, balanced, not too young or awkward. Really spectacular wine that ended up the best of the night for some participants. 95++

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• 2009 Château d'Yquem 97 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  Opened 24 hours prior to tasting and double-decanted. Youthful, a bit of vanilla and oak, tropical fruit; palate is full bodied, rich was but also elegance, some pineapple, lovely complexity; long finish. Really lovely Yquem, still in its youth. In my opinion not quite at the level of ‘01 and it needs decades, but it will eventually be great. 97

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• 2004 Château d'Yquem 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/2/2023)

  Very light golden-yellow color, lighter than expected for its age, perhaps evolving slowly; aromatic, acacia flowers, slightly honeyed, slight baking spices; palate is medium bodied, some white flowers, alcohol is showing a bit strong right now, medium-plus acidity; finish is medium length, some grapefruit/citrus pith. It's been over 5 years since my last taste of this wine and it doesn't seem to have budged. Last time it showed some improvement on day 2. 93-94
  Day 2: A bit more spice on the aromatics, still elegant and floral, white flowers; palate is better balanced though still showing a bit of excess (14%) alcohol; medium-long finish.
  At dinner (24 hours after opening, including 6+ hours in decanter): Elegant, refined, hard to compare against the 2009 Yquem but beguiling and definitely worth drinking even with some stiff competition.
  Day 3: Full 48 hours after opening. Color hasn't changed; aromatics continue to flesh out but remain elegant, floral, still some notable botrytis on the nose; palate is showing substantially more spice and elegance than it did when first opened, still showing relatively higher alcohol (14%); finish is getting longer as well. The way this has evolved over days leads me to believe the best days are a decade or two in its future. 94-95+
  Day 4: The last bit, possibly just starting to fade from its peak.

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• 2001 Château de Fargues 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  Golden-orange; aromatic, saffron, spices, great complexity; palate is medium-full bodied, lovely complexity, some tertiary but still with plenty of freshness; long finish. 96+
  In comparison to the '01 Suduiraut, the Fargues was showing more maturity, more interest for drinking now, though the Suduiraut showed more stuffing for future growth over decades.

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• 2001 Château Suduiraut 97 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  Youthful, spices, tons of fruit, fabulous depth, youthful tropical and peachy fruit; palate is full bodied, and richly textured, incredible depth; finish is incredibly long. Perhaps less ready than the 2001 Fargues, but I think higher quality. 96-97

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• 1988 Château Climens 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  (12/3/2023)

  Lighter color; aromatic, white flowers, acacia, honey; palate is medium bodied, elegant, lovely complexity; finish is long. This is quite nice and in an elegant style. 93
  On retaste and over an hour in the glass, this continued to improve and ultimately I thought this was better than the '86 Climens and the '88 Coutet. Rating up another two points. 95

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• 1988 Château Coutet Barsac 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  (12/3/2023)

  Light color; aromatic, minerals, elegant, light; balanced, elegant, not the longest length but nice. 91

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• 1986 Château Climens 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  (12/3/2023)

  Incredibly youthful golden; aromatic, white flowers; balanced, elegant, incredibly well balanced, medium-plus acidity; long finish. Not quite as complex as the 88 Climens. 94

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• 1989 Château d'Yquem 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  From 375mL. Darker golden-caramel; high intensity aromatics, caramel, burnt sugar; palate has richness, absolutely crazy complexity, caramel; long finish. One of the better bottles of this that I’ve opened. Some mentioned that perhaps this was advanced, but I think that's the vintage more than this particular bottle. It's definitely far along the maturity curve, but showing tons of complexity and depth even if it doesn't has as much fruit as the '89 Suduiraut Cuvee Madame. 96
  Day 2: Still rich, aromatic, complex, with plenty of toffee and caramel; unctuous but balanced with medium-plus acidity, vibrant throughout the palate. This held up quite well a day later for a wine at this age, but it's no better than when it was first opened.

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• 1990 Château de Fargues 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  Golden-orange; aromatic, grapefruit citrus, orange; palate is medium bodied, lovely balance, grapefruit pith, orange marmalade; finish is long. Really lovely, not the most complex but very classic. If this was the only wine served all night, I would have been happy. 93

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• 1989 Château Suduiraut Crème de Tête Cuvée Madame 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  (12/3/2023)

  Aromatic, figs, dried apricot, some toffee and caramel; palate is full bodied, rich, toffee, figs; finish is long. I think less complex than the ‘89 Yquem but still rich and very good and showing more fruit. 93

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• 1959 Château Coutet Barsac 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  (12/3/2023)

  From 375mL. Toffee and caramel colored; aromatic, nutty, orange marmalade citrus; palate is still slightly sweet but drying out now (Hudak stage 4), nutty, some caramel, some dried fruits; long finish. Really a unique experience to taste a Sauternes at this age. Reminds me of a dry sherry, but not that oxidative. 93, perhaps rating a point higher for the rare experience of tasting a sauternes at this age!
  Day 2: Alive and interesting, but it has lost a bit of spark compared to yesterday.

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