Château Guiraud, one of the top names of Sauternes, is making powerful, rich sweet wines with great density and profoundness.
Located close to first growth Château d’Yquem, Guiraud blends its wines with 65 percent semillion and 35 percent sauvignon blanc from its 128-hectare vineyards. The last decade was a great one for the wines at the estate, although there are excellent bottles from the 1990s and 1980s that James has tasted.
In 2006, the chateau was bought by joint owners including Robert Peugeot, the automotive magnate; Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier; Stephan Von Neipperg of Canon-la-Gaffelière; and longtime estate manage Xavier Planty. The owners assured continued success for the sweet-wine winery and the recent five vintages following the acquisition, from 2008 to 2012, are examples of the chateau’s consistent quality.
The 2008 vintage, for instance, is really drinkable now, with lots of dried peaches, apricots and honey, writes James. The winery’s 2009 and 2010 vintages performed extremely well and showed great potential for ageing despite the two years being generally hailed as banner years for Bordeaux reds.
But it wasn’t until the 2011 vintage that the greatness of this Premier Grand Cru chateau was placed front and center in the limelight. The wine is named as the Bordeaux wine of 2014 by James for its amazing richness and complexity, in addition to its accessible price point (less than $100 a bottle).
The wines in general at the chateau are very concentrated, thanks to the noble rot character of the wine, which comes out as spicy and floral, showing great intensity. The 2011 vintage, in particular, has this intensity of noble rot that makes it feel almost dry, James notes in the tasting note. The wine, as well as its 2008 vintage, is on pour at our Great Wines of the World event in Hong Kong at the Four Seasons Hotel from November 2 to 3. Be sure to join the event to taste for yourself.
Here are the five wines from the chateau ranked by score. Click on the wine names for scores and tasting notes.
1. Château Guiraud Sauternes 2011
2. Château Guiraud Sauternes 2009
3. Château Guiraud Sauternes 2010
4. Château Guiraud Sauternes 2008
5. Chateau Guiraud Sauternes 2012
-NW
