Community Tasting Note

forceberry wrote:

Wednesday, August 21, 2019 - 1997 was a very exceptional vintage for sweet wines in Loire, and none less so for Delesvaux. 11,7% alcohol.

Deep, intense reddish coppery color. Very rich, complex and rather unctuous nose with aromas of toast and smoke, some reductive gunpowder, a little bit of bruised apple, light orange marmalade tones, sweet notes of raisins and pear compote and a gaseous touch of SO2. The wine is oily, quite full-bodied and rather oily on the palate with very sweet and unctuous flavors of maple syrup, roasted nuts, some dried figs, a little bit of steely minerality, light raisiny tones, a hint of orange marmalade and a touch of molasses. The overall feel is quite soft and sticky as the relatively high acidity feels rather modest in comparison to this much sweetness; the high residual sugar makes the wine feel pretty cloying and the sweetness is so intense it almost feels like it burns on the tongue. The finish is long, sticky and gentle with intense, super-sweet flavors of syrupy molasses, some caramel, a little bit of roasted nuts, light notes of orange marmalade, a hint of sultana raisins and a touch of butterscotch.

A very rich, complex and unctuous dessert wine with lots of weight, sweetness and botrytized power. The overall feel is rather heavy and ponderous due to the level of acidity that feels just inadequate in comparison to the through-the-roof levels of residual sugar. Nevertheless, a very complex and rewarding wine. The modest acidity makes the wine feel lacking a bit in balance, taking its small toll on the score, but otherwise it is a very lovely and enjoyable effort. Outstanding value at under 20€ for a 500 ml bottle.

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