"Botrytis arrived late in 2016, so the Suduiraut was made from just the last two picks at the estate. Pineapple, passion fruit, mint, chamomile and exotic floral notes are beautifully delineated. Plush, deep and inviting to the core, the 2016 is also quite open and expressive today, all of which suggests it will drink well with minimal cellaring."
91-94 points - Antonio Galloni
"94% Sémillon, 6% Sauvignon Blanc. RS 140 g/l, TA 3.7 g/l. Not that much nose but big and ambitious with broad richness and a savoury finish. Waxy and round. Yet again, this shows real superiority. So long! Lots of botrytis and round and spicy. Really luscious and gorgeous and doesn’t include any of the dried-fruit wine. Spicy."
18+/20 points - Jancis Robinson
"This has so much botrytis/spice character. Dried-mushroom powder as well. Full yet round and gorgeous. Exuberant softness. Very sweet and complex. Complete Sauternes."
95-96 points - James Suckling
"The 2016 Suduiraut is fabulous. Crème br?lée, passion fruit, tangerine peel and exotic floral notes all race out of the glass. I marvel at how Suduiraut can deliver so much flavor intensity and yet remain so gracious and classy. The 140 grams of residual sugar are very well integrated. This is such a gorgeous wine. 2024-2046"
97 Points, Vinous
"A very concentrated Sauternes with a cornucopia of dried papaya, pineapple and mango, plus candied orange and tropical flowers that bowl you over. Although it stays in the background, there’s great acidity in this wine that keeps it very straight and clean, in spite of the luscious extravagance. Bright, citrusy finish. Drink or hold."
95 Points, JamesSuckling.com
Sauternes is home to arguably the most prestigious and long-lived sweet wines in the world. Located 65 km south of the city of Bordeaux at the southern tip of the Graves, the appellation has 2100 ha of vineyards planted on flat, alluvial gravels overlying thick layers of limestone. Although viewed as one appellation, Sauternes actually consists of five communes; Barsac, Bommes, Fargues, Preignanc, and Sauternes with Barsac also a designated appellation in its own right. What makes Sauternes unique is its special mesoclimate caused by the confluence of the Ciron and the Garonne rivers.
The region experiences evening mists in autumn which set in until late morning and are subsequently burnt off by warm sunny afternoons. It is precisely these conditions that provide the ideal environment for the growth of botrytis cinerea – a fungus that attacks the grapes, causing them to dehydrate leaving sweet shrivelled fruit, ideal for sweet wine production. Sauternes wines are made predominantly from Sémillon with Sauvignon Blanc with small amounts of Muscadelle. Golden in colour with enticing aromas and flavours of honey, acacia, stone-fruit, candied citrus and marmalade, classic Sauternes is rich, unctuous and beautifully balanced by fresh acidity. Capable of long-ageing, the wines turn deep amber with age, taking on more tertiary caramel flavours over time.
