Chateau Rieussec Sauternes 2019
- Vinous
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Parker
Robert - Decanter
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Suckling
James
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Tasting Note
Delicate golden color with soft green glints. Intense nose with tremendous aromatic richness. Initial notes of citrus zest are followed by lemon tart, and then toasted notes reminiscent of freshly baked brioche. The palate offers mandarin zest and candied orange, enlivened by a touch of star anise which underscores the wine’s aromatic freshness. Dense and rich, the palate has good length with a pleasant hint of bitterness on the finish.
It is only in Sauternes that botrytis can develop, giving Rieussec its unique richness. This noble rot meets our grapes to create a delicate osmosis that we reveal by harvesting each grape at the ideal moment. Once bottled, our wine starts its life cycle, drinkable from the earliest stage to the longest
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2019 Rieussec is absolutely gorgeous. Gracious and supremely elegant in feel, the 2019 is immediately impressive. An exotic melange of lemon confit, marzipan, white flowers, passionfruit and tangerine oil opens effortlessly. The 2019 is compelling from start to finish. Harvest took place from October 8 to 15, in three passes. The 2019 is the first vintage that will be offered in a stylish new bottle. It is no secret Sauternes has struggled of late. I must say I really liked the new and very modern presentation, which shows a more playful side of Sauternes that might just work in creating a bit more excitement around these wines.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale lemon-gold in color, the 2019 Rieussec flaunts a delicately scented nose of fresh grapefruit, lemon curd, lime leaves and clover honey with wafts of jasmine, white truffles and nutmeg. The palate slowly builds, revealing layers of apple and citrus fruits with loads of savory accents, framed by refreshing acidity and a seductively oily texture, finishing on a lingering honey-nut note. Range: (94 - 96)
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Decanter
This is the 2019, because Rieussec is no longer showing En Primeur but instead when it is in bottle. Marmalade and bitter orange peel is totally gorgeous, and this is one of the best Rieussec's that I can remember. A ton of juicy minerality, not overly concentrated but full of fresh pineapple and white mango, white peach and pear. 120g/l residual sugar. A brilliant Rieussec with so much personality and a full, rich texture through the mid palate.
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James Suckling
This is so delicious, with a medium body with medium sweetness. Dried mango and pineapple, as well as some vanilla. Bright and fresh. Lighter than some years. Yummy. Tarte-tartin. Love the new bottle. Drink and enjoy.
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For several generations, Chateau Rieussec has been the leading name in Sauternes wines. As early as 1868, Charles Cocks remarked “Beyond any of the others, Rieussec produces wines very similar to Yquem wines”. Extensive pruning and the sparing use of natural fertilizer helps keep production low. The techniques remain traditional and specific to the Sauternes region. In terms of yields, the traditional reference is that a single vine should produce a bottle of wine. Here, though, a single vine produces about a glass of wine. Traditional fermentation takes place in stainless steel vats and can last as long as two months. The wine is aged for 16 to 26 months in oak barrels, produced mostly at Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) cooperage and half are renewed each year. Classified "Premier Grand Cru" in 1855, Rieussec has held its reputation and the quality of its wine, throughout the difficult years which Sauternes properties have been through. Albert Vuillier, who took over in 1971, has paid special attention to the development of the vineyard and pushed the standard of the wines produced to the highest level. This policy has paid dividends, since in recent years, Rieussec has received particular acclaim in numerous tastings of the "Premier Cru" of Sauternes. In 1985, wishing to consolidate Rieussec's position, Albert Vuillier entered into partnership with Les Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) to go even further in the elusive search for the perfect Sauternes.
Apart from the classics, we find many regional gems of different styles.
Late harvest wines are probably the easiest to understand. Grapes are picked so late that the sugars build up and residual sugar remains after the fermentation process. Ice wine, a style founded in Germany and there referred to as eiswein, is an extreme late harvest wine, produced from grapes frozen on the vine, and pressed while still frozen, resulting in a higher concentration of sugar. It is becoming a specialty of Canada as well, where it takes on the English name of ice wine.
Vin Santo, literally “holy wine,” is a Tuscan sweet wine made from drying the local white grapes Trebbiano Toscano and Malvasia in the winery and not pressing until somewhere between November and March.
Rutherglen is an historic wine region in northeast Victoria, Australia, famous for its fortified Topaque and Muscat with complex tawny characteristics.
Sweet and unctuous but delightfully charming, the finest Sauternes typically express flavors of exotic dried tropical fruit, candied apricot, dried citrus peel, honey or ginger and a zesty beam of acidity.
Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle are the grapes of Sauternes. But Sémillon's susceptibility to the requisite noble rot makes it the main variety and contributor to what makes Sauternes so unique. As a result, most Sauternes estates are planted to about 80% Sémillon. Sauvignon is prized for its balancing acidity and Muscadelle adds aromatic complexity to the blend with Sémillon.
Botrytis cinerea or “noble rot” is a fungus that grows on grapes only in specific conditions and its onset is crucial to the development of the most stunning of sweet wines.
In the fall, evening mists develop along the Garonne River, and settle into the small Sauternes district, creeping into the vineyards and sitting low until late morning. The next day, the sun has a chance to burn the moisture away, drying the grapes and concentrating their sugars and phenolic qualities. What distinguishes a fine Sauternes from a normal one is the producer’s willingness to wait and tend to the delicate botrytis-infected grapes through the end of the season.