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Bordeaux 2005: Sauternes & Barsac
Bordeaux 2005
En primeur
At Two Years
Sauternes & Barsac
At Four Years
Tasting the Sauternes at the annual UGC tasting is usually a delight, the wines giving a short but nevertheless very welcome respite from the constant assault of tannin-laden red wines. I was anticipating very good wines here; the vintage seemed to hold the promise of pure botrytis character and good ripeness, and if the red wines are anything to judge by, good acidity too. Unfortunately, it is of course quite inappropriate to translate the structure of the red wines onto the white wines of the region - the white wines of Graves, with their rather low acidities, are a fine example of that. The same characteristic can also be found in Sauternes; in this otherwise almost universally successful vintage, the sweet wines did indeed show low acidity in many cases. Not in every case, thankfully, and regardless almost all were rich and flavoursome. But for those who have a deep need for acidity to match the sugar in a sweet wine, I do not think many of the following wines will be the ones for you.
Looking beyond acidity and structure for a moment, the wines did all possess a fine purity of flavour, with pineapples, apples, honey and floral elements all coming to the fore. There was some botrytis in evidence too, although not as much as I would have expected given the climatic conditions in the region, and the description of the very pure botrytis infection that was found upon the fruit when harvested. Despite this, I think these wines, although still rather straightforward and primary now, will display more character and develop more complexity with time. Nevertheless, in many cases the wines are not quite in possession of the depth of character or potential that can be found in the equivalent 1997, 2001 or even the 2003 vintage I think. They are quite close to the latter I think, although in 2005 we do not have a stand-out wine as we did two years ago, when the 2003 Suduiraut was so sublime. (22/11/07)
Sauternes & Barsac 2005 - Tasting Notes
Tasted at the UGC de Bordeaux tasting in October 2007. I have also
included notes on wines tasted at a Decanter event in November 2007. Click
to locate stockists.
Chateau Bastor-Lamontagne 2005: Lightness and freshness here, as is
typical of Bastor I think. The palate has a lovely, cleansing style, with light
pineapple and apple fruit to the fore, with spice and pepper bringing up the
rear. Good midpalate texture, although it fades away a little thereafter. Good
fruit though. 15.5-16/20
Chateau de Fargues
2005: This has a good a characterful nose, with
quite dense honey and pineapple character, and also some botrytis. Rich, deep,
concentrated on the palate, appealing, with meaty substance and great texture.
The acidity is a touch on the low side, but it has plenty of delicious appeal. 17-17.5+/20
Chateau
Guiraud 2005: A denser concentration of aroma than some on the nose
here, with a smoky nuance which is appealing, alongside some nice botrytis.
Rich, flashy and unctuous, a simply fabulous texture dominates here, although it
is packed with flavour too. On the negative side, the acidity is a touch
low, but this still gives plenty of pleasure. A fine showing. 17-18+/20
Chateau La Tour Blanche 2005: This too is very appealing, with plenty of
fresh honey and vanilla aroma to be found on the nose. Rich but quite direct in
style, creamy and lusciously textured, with a wealth of vanilla and spice
flavour. A good presence of acidity too, to provide some lift and balance. This
perhaps has really excellent potential. 17-18+/20
Les Charmilles de Tour Blanche 2005: The second wine of
La Tour Blanche. A fresh pineapple nose, very open, with plenty of nice,
relaxed fruit and a touch of honey. A pleasantly plump style on the palate, it
is round, a touch perfumed, but with a good grip and backbone to it, which
provides balance and focus. This is rather appealing - Les Charmilles seems to
me to often be one of the better second wines. 16+/20
Chateau
de Rayne-Vigneau 2005: Bright honeyed fruit here, and a really appealing
vigour and concentration. Delicious entry, cool, gently fleshy, bordering on
unctuous, but with a lightly floral, fruity and minerally lift. Lots of flare
and character, good grip, and a light, acidic freshness. Good if somewhat steely
finish. 16.5-17+/20
Chateau Sigalas-Rabaud 2005: There is an attractive creaminess to the
nose, if that is possible, with aromas of honey, flower petals, beeswax and a
little vein of botrytis too. Rich and velutinous, fat, rather minerally and
fresh too though, and a good concentration of flavour. Better acidity than
present in some other wines too. Very good indeed. 17+/20
Chateau
Suduiraut 2005: This has a delightfully pure character, with fine and
fresh pineapple aroma, and glorious notes of honey and vanilla. It is pure,
gentle, fleshy and rich. The aromatics are pleasing, the texture is the same.
The acidity is rather low, as I think I noticed when tasting en primeur in April
2006, but there is plenty here that appeals to me. Very good effort. 17.5-18+/20
Chateau
Climens 2005: There is a good depth here, and a meaty concentration, as
well as something that some of the other wines do not have, a nice concentration
of beeswax and botrytis character. Big fat, creamy and unctuous, with lots of
flashy character and deep, velutinous texture. Candied fruit flavour, and some
nice acidity too. Lots of appeal here. 18.5+/20
Chateau
Doisy-Daëne 2005: This has a smoky, mineral nose with a very pure
candied fruit character which I find very stylish. Rich, velutinous and creamy,
but with a minerally and chalky edge, this has a warm and welcoming nature. Just
a little botrytis behind it. Lots of texture, just not quite as concentrated as
I would have liked. Very good though. 16.5-17+/20
Chateau Doisy-Védrines 2005: A very bright and lively set of aromatics
here, showing nice vanilla, honey and pineapple characteristics. Rich and
creamy, with a rather soft and fleshy style, with acidity also on the low side.
There is a little grip running beneath it all, and a rather candied pastille
character to the fruit, nicely livened up with some good botrytis. Very good
indeed. 17-17.5+/20
Chateau
Nairac 2005: Honey, vanilla and oak are apparent on the nose here, with
rather discrete fruit at first, although it does reveal a little more with due
time in the glass. Creamy, velvety texture, with honey and beeswax character,
and decent acidity to cap it off. Good flavour and a very typical profile for
Nairac. Good potential. 16.5+/20
