Chateau Sigalas Rabaud Sauternes 2009
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Robert
Parker -
Wine
Enthusiast -
Wine
Spectator -
James
Suckling
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Sigalas Rabaud was sensational out of barrel and served blind, the wine does nothing to dispel my initial optimism that this is the apogee for the estate – so far. It is bestowed with an intense bouquet of quince, orange zest and almond with a lighter touch of honey compared to its peers. The palate is medium-bodied with great viscosity. This is an assertive Sauternes that wants to make an impression, although it does not display the complexity or breeding of Yquem and Suduiraut. Still, it is very composed and perhaps is saving something up for later, biding its time as it were. This is a wondrous wine. Drink now-2040.
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Wine Enthusiast
This wine is still very closed. That said, its promise is in the rich, weighty texture. It shows a ripe feel, with orange and lemon freshness. On the finish, the acidity is dominant.
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Wine Spectator
Lush but defined, with a lovely floral and green tea frame to the dried pineapple, quince, pear and yellow apple fruit flavors, which are seamless through the long, lightly toasted coconut-tinged finish. Very suave. Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc. Best from 2014 through 2025. 1,500 cases made.
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James Suckling
Dense with powerful aromas and flavors of dried mushroom, spices and pineapple. Medium sweet. Full body yet racy and fresh due to intense acidity. Medium finish. Drink or hold.
Other Vintages
2019-
Robert
Parker -
James
Suckling -
Wine
Spectator
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.