I’ve been working slowly through Sauternes and Tokaji, and want to put in some Huet Vouvray Moelleux/Moelleux 1ere Trie into the mix. That said, I’m a bit overwhelmed by the Huet range, and would appreciate a little orientation.
Sweetness: Sec, Demi-Sec, Moelleux, or Moelleux 1ère Trie. On a relative scale, one would expect Moelleux 1ere Trie to be sweeter than Moelleux, or would the sugar levels be the same as Moelleux? Is sugar the only difference between these wines, or would you expect acidity and structure to also differ dramatically?
And on an absolute scale, would one expect sugar g/l to vary wildly by vintage? I’ve read that sugar levels can be as high as 400 g/l… but have also read reviews of some premier trie that have 70 g/l. So I’m a bit perplexed. Because unless 400 g/l is a typo, that sounds ridiculous. Conversely, 70 g/l sounds lower than I would have expected.
Accordingly, would one expect the 1ere Trie wines to be less sweet than both Sauternes and Tokaji? Could two people drink a full 750ml? I don’t see many of the older bottles readily available in 375s (e.g., the famed 1989 vintage), which could be a red herring, but suggests to me less folks are needed to finish a full bottle.
89 Constance is my favorite dessert wine of all time, though not sure I’ll ever taste a mature bottle.
I do think of Moelleux as less sweet than most Sauternes, more Auslese than BA, unsure of technical sweetness levels,
Well, it says that the sugar content of the grapes were 390 g/l. High, for sure, but not nearly as high as the wine’s sugar content is (unless the wine is around 0% in alcohol).
The back label doesn’t say how much there is alcohol, but if the ABV was 10%, the residual sugar content must be somewhere around 200-220 g/l.
If you’re really interested in learning more about Huet, I’d recommend an old issue of John Gilman’s View from the Cellar which gives an outstanding overview of Huet, as well as lots of notes and insights about older vintages: Back Issues 2007. I believe it might be 2007, Issue #12. Anyway, back issues are $25, and you could always ping John to make sure that’s the right back issue. John covers the Loire pretty thoroughly as well.
Whoops, yes, sorry. I guess my brain must’ve blacked out mid-sentence. I meant to say that the wine is surely high in residual sugar, but not nearly as high as the number stated in the back label - i.e. sugar content of the grapes.
Only a few wines made by Philippe Delesvaux, Patrick Baudoin, Jo Pithon and Rene Renou in the mid-'90s have sugars in the mid hundreds and are more like Essencias. They’re what Rovani referred to at the time as “sugar hunters.” Unfortunately, for them and those that like extreme sweeties, the market did not approve and most of them have since focused on drier wines.
Eric, I think you’re thinking of the Rene Renou Cuvee Zenith, which was their sweetest Cuvee. Anne is the level below that. That said, I don’t think the levels are nearly as high as you cite.
As for Huet, I think folks are overestimating the sugar levels in the Cuvee Constance’s and 1ere Tries. Typically, the Cuvee Constance weighs in around 135-200 g/l residual. The 1ere Tries around 65-100. Moelleux tend to be 40-60, demi-sec 20-35 and Sec usually falls in the 6-16 to maybe 20 g/l range.
Like others, I find the '89 Cuvee Constance one of the greatest wines I’ve ever had. As Nicos mentioned, unfortunately, there’s a high rate of TCA in that wine, as well as all their '89s. My experience is around 30% corked rate over the past 20+ years of drinking them. A real shame as their '89s are magical.
As for servings, it would be tough for two people to down a bottle in one setting. Personally, I think a perfect size group for a bottle would be six people as you’ll all get good sized pours and you’ll be able to see the wine evolve for a few hours before killing the bottle.
