The year 2009 was very good for
Botryotinia fuckeliana!!
And as we all know, Botryotinia fuckeliana (Botrytis Cinerea) fungus causes the famous Noble Rot, which produces the divinely sweet nectar, that is the Sauternes Wine.
A good vintage of Sauternes needs many conditions to be exactly right and so a great Sauternes vintage is very rare.
Fortunately, the year 2009 was exactly right for the Noble Rot in every possible way, making the 2009 Sauternes, a great vintage indeed!
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It is strange therefore that there is not much buzz about the 2009 Sauternes out there! Instead, every one is talking, blogging, Tweeting and reviewing the Reds, even though the record 2009 vintage is probably an even better vintage for the Sauternes than the Reds. It is certainly more consistent!
So we start with “The Secret Great Vintage of 2009” by listing below, the best of the Great Vintage Sauternes of 2009, in three different categories as follows:
1. The Ten Best Sauternes of 2009 for Overall Quality
2. The Ten Best Sauternes of 2009 for Value
3. The Ten Best Sauternes of 2009 for Investment
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1. The Ten Best Sauternes of 2009 for Overall Quality
d’Yquem
Climens
Suduiraut
de Fargues
Guiraud
Rieussec
Lafaurie-Peyraguey
Clos Haut-Peyraguey
La Tour Blanche
Coutet
2. The Ten Best Sauternes of 2009 for Value
Raymond Lafon
Doisy Daene
Partarrieu
Domaine de l’Alliance
de Malle
d’Arche
Cantegril
La Clotte-Cazalis
Lamothe-Guignard
de Myrat
3. The Ten Best Sauternes of 2009 for Investment
d’Yquem
Climens
Suduiraut
de Fargues
Guiraud
Rieussec
Coutet
Raymond Lafon
Doisy Daene
Doisy Vedrines
Our thanks to Steve Webb of Bordeaux Gold, who specialises in Sauternes, for the above information and for all of his help. http://bordeauxgold.com/
By the way, it appears that the best of the Great Sauternes Vintage 2009 is fast disappearing!
So those of you who really love the Sauternes, this may well be the time to act!
Cheers!
Thanks for the post and link! We tasted all the 2009 Sauternes at Ch de Fargues alongside Neal Martin of The Wine Advocate and were truly amazed at the overall quality. We also tasted the excellent 2007 vintage as well which was very different in style – finely balanced and taut compared to the ultra rich 2009s.