Another wonderful all-sauternes dinner. It had been a few years since our last one, but the wines all showed spectacularly, the food was an excellent match, and the company was fabulous. Apologies if my notes are not as thorough as they typically are... at a dinner with 12+ wines this becomes quite challenging.
Appetizer combo + Birds Nest soup
2007 Château Doisy-Daëne - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac (12/3/2023)
From 375mL. Aromatic, honeyed white flowers, slight mint and herbal; balanced, sweet but balanced, elegant, white flowers; finish is medium to medium-plus. I like this more than my previous bottle from 2020. 90 (90 points)
2010 Château de Fargues - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
Lovely light golden color; aromatic, honey, white fruits, peach, a hint of tropical; youthful, sweet but balanced, medium-plus acidity, great complexity, a bit of citrus grapefruit pith but not as much as in some vintages, some lemon verbena; long finish. Youthful but perfectly balanced. 94++ Over the evening and on retaste, and in context with some other wines, this was just rocking. Complex, balanced, not too young or awkward. Really spectacular wine that ended up the best of the night for some participants. 95++ (95 points)
Wok-Fried Supreme Broth Maine Lobster
2009 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
Youthful, a bit of vanilla and oak, tropical fruit; palate is full bodied, rich was but also elegance, some pineapple, lovely complexity; long finish. Really lovely Yquem, still in its youth. In my opinion not quite at the level of ‘01 and it needs decades, but it will eventually be great. 97 (97 points)
Sea scallops & beef tenderloin cubes with cantonese XO sauce
2004 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/2/2023)
Very light golden-yellow color, lighter than expected for its age, perhaps evolving slowly; aromatic, acacia flowers, slightly honeyed, slight baking spices; palate is medium bodied, some white flowers, alcohol is showing a bit strong right now, medium-plus acidity; finish is medium length, some grapefruit/citrus pith. It's been over 5 years since my last taste of this wine and it doesn't seem to have budged. Last time it showed some improvement on day 2. 93-94 Day 2: A bit more spice on the aromatics, still elegant and floral, white flowers; palate is better balanced though still showing a bit of excess (14%) alcohol; medium-long finish. At dinner (24 hours after opening, including 6+ hours in decanter): Elegant, refined, hard to compare against the 2009 Yquem but beguiling and definitely worth drinking even with some stiff competition. (94 points)
Peking Duck
2001 Château de Fargues - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
Golden-orange; aromatic, saffron, spices, great complexity; palate is medium-full bodied, lovely complexity, some tertiary but still with plenty of freshness; long finish. 96+ In comparison to the '01 Suduiraut, the Fargues was showing more maturity, more interest for drinking now, though the Suduiraut showed more stuffing for future growth over decades. (96 points)
2001 Château Suduiraut - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
Youthful, spices, tons of fruit, fabulous depth, youthful tropical and peachy fruit; palate is full bodied, and richly textured, incredible depth; finish is incredibly long. Perhaps less ready than the 2001 Fargues, but I think higher quality. 96-97 (97 points)
Steamed/Roasted Sea Bass
1988 Château Climens - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac (12/3/2023)
Lighter color; aromatic, white flowers, acacia, honey; palate is medium bodied, elegant, lovely complexity; finish is long. This is quite nice and in an elegant style. 93 On retaste and over an hour in the glass, this continued to improve and ultimately I thought this was better than the '86 Climens and the '88 Coutet. Rating up another two points. 95 (95 points)
1988 Château Coutet Barsac - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac (12/3/2023)
Light color; aromatic, minerals, elegant, light; balanced, elegant, not the longest length but nice. 91 (91 points)
Braised virginia ham with tender greens
1986 Château Climens - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac (12/3/2023)
Incredibly youthful golden; aromatic, white flowers; balanced, elegant, incredibly well balanced, medium-plus acidity; long finish. Not quite as complex as the 88 Climens. 94 (94 points)
Crispy Skin Chicken
1989 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
From 375mL. Darker golden-caramel; high intensity aromatics, caramel, burnt sugar; palate has richness, absolutely crazy complexity, caramel; long finish. One of the better bottles of this that I’ve opened. Some mentioned that perhaps this was advanced, but I think that's the vintage more than this particular bottle. It's definitely far along the maturity curve, but showing tons of complexity and depth even if it doesn't has as much fruit as the '89 Suduiraut Cuvee Madame. 96 (96 points)
1990 Château de Fargues - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
Golden-orange; aromatic, grapefruit citrus, orange; palate is medium bodied, lovely balance, grapefruit pith, orange marmalade; finish is long. Really lovely, not the most complex but very classic. If this was the only wine served all night, I would have been happy. 93 (93 points)
Salted Egg Crab
1989 Château Suduiraut Crème de Tête Cuvée Madame - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes (12/3/2023)
Aromatic, figs, dried apricot, some toffee and caramel; palate is full bodied, rich, toffee, figs; finish is long. I think less complex than the ‘89 Yquem but still rich and very good and showing more fruit. 93 (93 points)
Braised Longevity Noodle with Abalone Sauce
1959 Château Coutet Barsac - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac (12/3/2023)
From 375mL. Toffee and caramel colored; aromatic, nutty, orange marmalade citrus; palate is still slightly sweet but drying out now (Hudak stage 4), nutty, some caramel, some dried fruits; long finish. Really a unique experience to taste a Sauternes at this age. Reminds me of a dry sherry, but not that oxidative. 93-94, perhaps rating a point higher for the rare experience of tasting a sauternes at this age! (94 points)
Thanks Ashish for organizing such a fun night. WOTNs were spread out quite evenly, with at least 1 vote going to I think 9 of the 13 wines for WOTN (some ties in there). It really came down to preference. A great education in Sauternes.
An epic night surveying 13 Sauternes wines from across the spectrum, and one blind ringer. Not a bad wine among them. Very educational, with some very experienced palates at the table, and great to be able to see a few vertical comparisons. Turns out a Cantonese banquet is a great setting for this kind of experience.
Warm-ups
2007 Château Doisy-Daëne - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
A nice warm up to the night. A bit of green-herb-vanilla characteristic of American oak, but obviously doesn't see any of that. Fresh squeezed orange, a little marmalade, lighter botrytis spice, a bit of menthol that I've never had in Sauternes before. Lighter-medium bodied; fine boned. Doesn't quite have the wow of some of the later wines. (91 points)
2009 Bedrock Wine Co. Sémillon Lachryma Montis, Botrytized Old Vine Monte Rosso Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley
Drank as part of a blockbuster Sauternes night - my blind ringer. A bit ungiving aromatically. Light in color and body, softly sweet, with apricot, barley sugar, grapefruit peel. A bit on the simpler side, but very tasty. (92 points)
Gen Z Sauternes
Wines born after 2000, with some ready to go, but mostly still adolescents.
2010 Château de Fargues - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Oooh this is good, a definite step up from the starting pair. Luscious texture, more unctuous and richer, but also plenty of acidity. Effortless on the medium+ finish. A little confit lemon, lovely inner mouth perfume of white flowers and grapefruit peel, medium spicy botrytis, and fans out into a complex array of golden raisins and some tropical fruits. (94 points)
2009 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Double decanted 24 hours in advance. Still a bit tightly wound upon first pour, and progressively shows more and more over the course of 3 hours in glass. Complex aromatics, steely, with a slug of vanilla oak, super rich and powerful but everything is in balance. Viscous as all get-out, almost motor-oil like, yet juxtaposed with the light caress on the palate. As the night wears on, it shows less unctuous apricot jam, and shows more bright pear, with super refined inner-mouth aromatics. The finish is super long, minutes long. Some spicy botrytis that complements the slightly spicy beef & scallop in XO sauce. 93ish to start the night, but ends up in the 96-97 range. I imagine this will be superb in another .... 25 years? (96 points)
2004 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
One of my wines of the night, alongside the '86 Climens and '89 Yquem. Although not as powerful or long as the '09 Yquem, the '04 shows an swoonworthy elegance, like a kiss from a fairy. Lightness and higher in acid, with light bitter orange marmalade, jasmine, and light botrytis spice. Winsome combination of apricot, orange and barley sugar on the finish. Great for drinking now, and probably a 40-50 year wine, whereas the '09 is clearly a 100 year wine. (97 points)
2001 Château de Fargues - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Wonderful and memorable, perhaps a half step behind the '01 Suduiraut tonight, perhaps only because it's more introspective. Really deserves to be contemplated on it's own; I suspect it shows its best when not in a crowded field of loud voices. Moderately unctuous, with saffon, marmalade, some mature secondary notes of burnt caramel and signs the sweetness level is dropping. Very sophisticated. (95 points)
2001 Château Suduiraut - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Quite an aristocratic Suduiraut - the complete package. Perfectly balanced, effortlessly beautiful, an Audrey Hepburn sort of wine. Everything in it's right place, with vibrant acid playing against the barley sugar, marmalade, and panoply of tropical fruits. Long finish makes a bolder statement than the '01 de Fargues. (96 points)
Millennial Sauternes
Fully into adulthood, even if some of them are showing impossibly young.
1988 Château Coutet Barsac - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Lovely steely nose. Lighter on the palate, sort of dances across the tongue, with grapefruit and burnt sugar. A bit more advanced and a shorter finish than the '88 Climens. (92 points)
1988 Château Climens - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Wow, how is this wine 35 years old??? Fresh as a daisy, low botrytis, with a laser beam of acid; it ends up feeling younger than the '10 de Fargues, the youngest wine on the table. Lightest color of the night. A bit of a funky cheesy-mushroom note that is a little distracting. (93 points)
1986 Château Climens - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
One of my wines of the night, along with the '04 Yquem and '89 Yquem. A bigger wine that I expect from Climens, with quite a powerful frame, packed densely with acid, spicy botrytis, flowers, burnt sugar, toffee and some orchard fruit. But still retains such a sense of elegance and harmony. This wine doesn't shout, but you listen when it speaks. Perhaps this is what the '01 will drink like in another 15 years? Still quite youthful and maybe not yet at peak. (97 points)
1989 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
A truly great wine. So much to unpack here. The complete package on the nose - white and yellow flowers, cold steel, botrytis spice, well integrated oak, some subtle white truffle. So complex on the palate, it sends shivers down the spine, with golden raisin, fine honeyed mead, creme brulee, saffron, more white truffle, and a gobsmacking finish that goes on for minutes. Others at the table thought this was perhaps a bit more advanced than it should be, but I found it to be a complete stunner. (97 points)
1989 Château Suduiraut Crème de Tête Cuvée Madame - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
It's a tall ask to go head-to-head with '89 Yquem, but this held up admirably! Dense, still very young, with tropical mango/pineapple, button mushroom, some savory iodine salts. A bit more monolithic than the Yquem, and while it doesn't tip into ponderous, it doesn't sweep one away like the Yquem (or the '01 Suduiraut for that matter). (95 points)
1990 Château de Fargues - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Richer than the '01 de Fargues, a bit sweeter, and could use a touch more acid. Still there's a lovely elegance and balance here - seems to be a common theme with all the de Fargues. Grapefruit peel, grapefruit confit, some nutty toffee/caramel, and less complex than the '89s tonight. Again, I feel this wine would show better on its own (than say after '89 Yquem). (93 points)
Boomer Sauternes
Still capable of teaching the youngsters a thing or three.
1959 Château Coutet Barsac - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
What a treat to experience - thanks Fred. Fully tertiary notes of rum raisin, toasted almonds, mushroom, and creme brulee. The acidity here is thrilling, and it drinks like a Sercial Madeira. Acid freaks should find a way to try this wine. A bit of VA, but elegant, notably drier than the rest of the wines but still carries some nice sweetness. Tons of complexity, but doesn't quite have the amplitude of the bigger wines at the table. Still, one of my favorites of the night, with the mouth-watering acidity bringing me back to the glass again and again. (96 points)
Yeah—these are thorough enough for me, Ashish. . Amazing dinner, so glad you got to do this. Much lower end but a friend popped and poured a 10 Myrat from half and it was really quite engaging and good, plenty of honey and yellow fruit notes
This was a lovely event. Thanks to Ashish and Vince for organizing and curating a truly memorable evening.
I can’t argue with the notes, though I might quibble with a point here or there.
Tonight I’m enjoying a glass of the ‘90 de Fargues, from the remnant I brought home. Night two it’s going strong, seeming a little richer, denser, and now crammed with sweet honeyed botrytis inflected orange marmalade, pear, and more apricots than you can shake a stick it. Delicious, a real pleasure as my memories of the other de Fargues, Climens, Suiduiraut and d’Yquems drift from my mind.
Actually I kind of agree with you. Mostly because I brought home a bunch of the bottles that people left and I’ve still been drinking nothing but sauternes, and likely that will continue for another 1-2 days. At that point, I’ll want to move on to something else for a while…
Honestly, pretty much every dish paired well. The beef tenderloin in XO sauce was especially memorable, partly because it was so unexpected - the spice of botrytis matching marvelously with the slight heat and sweetness of the beef.
And tonight I finished off the ‘09 Yquem … with the very inspired pairing of a pouch of heat-and-serve Trader Joe’s yellow tadka dal and quinoa. And it was mighty tasty
Thanks again to everyone who participated, and to Ashish and those that helped organize. If nothing else, it showed that wine aficionados are a congenial and generous bunch…
I have long wanted to try Sauternes with Chinese food (specifically the duck pairing, but others as well) and found this experience greatly rewarding. While not a blockbuster tasting dinner like some others, I think it will be a great reference going forward. All of the wines (except for the '89 d’Yquem and '59 Coutet, see comments below) performed well and some, like the '10 Fargues, '01 Suduiraut and '88 Climens, at the top of their game.
The '59 Coutet is not a common wine but I picked up a half case of halves not too long ago and I think they are darker than they should be if they were stored perfectly. But given the ultimate flavor profile, I guess they were stored well enough…just not as bright as I wanted it to be. The '89 Yquem was always a big wine and dark…I was just a little surprised at how advanced it was…I guess it’s only a 50 year wine instead of 100. Oh well.
Also, lots of food firsts for me…some of the appetizers, the soup, crab and lobster they way they prepared them was also new to me. And the dessert was intriguing…was the gelatin flavored? or just the cocoanut and black beans?
. Amazing dinner, so glad you got to do this. Much lower end but a friend popped and poured a 10 Myrat from half and it was really quite engaging and good, plenty of honey and yellow fruit notes
