Light golden colour. Nose with tropical fruit, some apricot, honey, some saffron, and classical botrytis notes. The oak note is very well hidden and the pure botrytis notes dominate. The nose is elegant and rather discrete. The palate is very full-bodied with an enormous concentration of aromas, loads of honey, dried apricots, spice, quite good acidity, and a long and fruity aftertaste that goes on lite an Yquem should. The palate is approachable, the nose is young and a bit discrete. Overall the wine is definitely top class! Young, but drinks well now, 96 p.

Since the nose was rather discrete with surprisingly well hidden oak and dominating botrytis together with tropical fruit, the nose wasn’t spot-on Sauternes at the first sniff. It could actually have been some other top-class botrytised wine. The palate on the other hand, is definitely more classical Sauternes, with those spice notes that are created by the combination of botrytised grapes and the new oak barrels.

Actually, I don’t fully agree with the producer's own comparison to the 2001 and 2007 vintages. 2011 is a top-notch vintage that combines a lot of weight and concentration with a fine balance and isn’t lacking in terms of elegance, but it is not as acid-dominated as the 2001 or 2007, where in particular the 2001 is “built for eternity”.

Tasted from half bottle.

Golden colour. The nose is dominated by honey and saffron, and we also find pronounced spice notes, dried apricot and classical developed Sauternes notes. The palate is full-bodied and very spicy with dried apricot, honey, a tiny hint of fiery notes, balancing acidity, and a long aftertaste. A lot of power, classical nose and a long aftertaste, but after all not the perfectly balanced palate an Yquem should have. Drinks well now (regular bottles could perhaps develop for some more time), 92 p.

The 2004 wouldn’t need more concentration or spice, but it would have benefited from a little more acidity to get more freshness and balance. It is still a great Sauternes, but the hint of alcoholic fire I can detect shouldn’t really come through in an Yquem, so it doesn't qualify as a top-notch Yquem.

Tasted from a half bottle.