Chateau d'Yquem - Sauternes 2006 (375ml)

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Producer	Chateau d'Yquem
Country	France
Region	Bordeaux
Subregion	Sauternes
Varietal	White (Other)
Vintage	2006
Sku	12104013
Size	375ml

 

WA

96-98

Country: France
Region: Bordeaux, Sauternais
Variety: 80 to 90% Sémillon, 10 to 20% Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle
Terroir: gravelly, sandy clay soil;
Winemaking: fermentation in barrels; each batch is sorted after fermentation; aged 18 months in oak barrels

Medium lemon-gold colored, the 2006 d'Yquem is a little reticent at this stage, slowly revealing notes of pineapple pastry, dried apple slices, orange preserves and spice cake plus nuances of crème brûlée, preserved ginger, nutmeg and baking bread. The palate offers mouth-coating tropical fruit and baking spice layers with a seductive oiliness to the texture and loads of citrus sparks, finishing with bold freshness and amazing length. Allow it just a couple more years in bottle to get over this slightly muted hump, then drink it for the next 25+ years.

While no surprise here, this wine, which will be bottled in 2009, is certainly this estate’s greatest effort since their 2001. It completely outclasses everything from the appellation, but even when you’re number one, that’s often hard to do. This light gold wine offers up a sensational smorgasbord of aromas including huge honeyed pineapple and other caramelized tropical fruit flavors, massive richness, and a viscous, unctuous texture with the oak beautifully integrated. The wine has enough acidity to buttress its full-bodied mouthfeel, but this is not by any means the sweetest or most alcoholic of the d’Yquems I have tasted. In fact, in the range of d’Yquems, this is a powerful wine, but it is one built more on finesse and elegance, a la the 1988. Nevertheless, this wine will prove to have 50+ years of longevity. The finish, the mid-palate, the sensation of looking at a skyscraper of Semillon with a small dosage of Sauvignon, is impressive. Like all of the sweet wines of Barsac and Sauternes, one can drink this young, but the nuances and complexities really don’t emerge for at least a decade, especially in the case of a wine such as this. Bravo