Sauternes

The wine

South of Bordeaux, across five Gironde villages crossed by the Ciron, Sauternes is born of an exceptional climatic phenomenon: the meeting of this small river's cool waters with the warmer Garonne creates autumnal morning fogs that awaken Botrytis cinerea, the famous 'noble rot' fungus. AOC since 1936 across some fourteen hundred hectares, the appellation is built on Sémillon (dominant), Sauvignon Blanc, and Muscadelle. Harvest, strictly manual, requires several successive passes through the rows to gather only berries shrivelled by botrytis. The result: a sweet wine of golden to amber colour, rich in at least forty-five grams of residual sugar and twelve percent alcohol, with aromas of candied fruit, honey, white flowers, and spice. Château d'Yquem reigns as Premier Cru Supérieur, a unique distinction in the 1855 Bordeaux classification. Serve chilled (eight to ten degrees) with seared foie gras, Roquefort, or a roasted apricot tart.