Liquid Gold 2026
The Liquid Gold concept is a simple one. Having recognised my cellar was overly crammed with sweet wines which needed drinking, the Liquid Gold reports were introduced as annual themed tasting report to push these sweet wines – mostly of some age, but with a few young wines along the way – into the spotlight.
Perhaps this is best illustrated with a quick run down of previous episodes, which are as follows:
- Liquid Gold 2019: Sauternes, 2013 to 1988
- Liquid Gold 2020: 1989 Vouvray Revisited
- Liquid Gold 2021: 1990 Vouvray Revisited
- Liquid Gold 2022: Quarts de Chaume, 2017 to 1985
- Liquid Gold 2023: 2001 Sauternes
As you can see, this being the next episode in the Liquid Gold line-up, cracks have appeared in my initial ambition for this to be an annual report. The years 2024 and 2025 seem to have flown by with no new episode. One reason for this is, having moved back to Vouvray for this report, the sheer volume of candidate wines was overwhelming. The delay does have an unexpected benefit though; in 2026 the Vouvray appellation celebrates 90 years since its inception, arguably making this report a timely one.
So without further explanation or excuses, let’s crack on with Liquid Gold 2026.
Liquid Gold Episode 6
Having completed a deep dive into the 2001 vintage in Sauternes back in 2023, I decided for this episode to head back to the Loire Valley, for a somewhat broader theme. And having recently featured Quarts de Chaume, this time Vouvray called to me.
