Château d'Yquem Premier Cru Supérieur Sauternes 2021

"Premier Cru Classé Supérieur" translates to "First Growth Classified Superior" in French, the highest of three levels of quality in Sauternes – and Château d'Yquem is the only estate to hold this title in all of the Sauternes region! We have under a case left of this rare 100 POINT stunner from the 2021 vintage – an astoundingly stunning wine with head-swirling savings!
 
This is truly a collector’s wine – highly sought-after and regularly commanding steep price tags in auction that rival some of the most expensive wines in the world. The 2021 comes from a toss-up of a growing year in Bordeaux – with frost, hail, and mildew – though the ever-meticulous farming and production processes, alongside a window of generous high pressure from September to October, allowed the team to craft something utterly flawless on all accounts here. Semillon makes up 75% of the wine, with the remainder Sauvignon Blanc, with 7 grams per liter of residual sugar offering up the characteristic voluptuousness and bright opulence. Twelve months in 80% once-used barrels and 20% new oak imparts this wonderful warmth of vanilla and cinnamon.

Château d'Yquem dates back to the middle ages, and the King of England, Richard I, once owned the estate in the late 12th century. He praised the high quality of its wines, which were already then famous, before the estate passed hands of ownership several times until the 18th century, when the Lur-Saluces family purchased it. Since 1999, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton has run the Château, which covers 125 hectares of some of the most exquisite terroir in Sauternes, growing a mix of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc grapes. The soils are famous for their unique blue clay qualities (also known as “mystique clay”), which helps regulate moisture levels in the vineyard to pristinely develop botrytis’ noble rot – the fungus that contributes to the famous flavor profile of Château d'Yquem’s portfolio of luxury sweet wines.

All at once, it is lavish, yet terrifically balanced and humming with a beautiful line of acidity, and just packed with intense flavors of white peach, mandarin orange, beeswax, apricot, a tinge of lime juice, crème brûlée, spring wildflowers, and this salty oyster shell and Club cracker quality. Truly, every wine connoisseur should experience this at least once in their lives! An incredibly long, lustrous finish brings this home with a poised purity that is delightfully approachable. For more than $100 off – and with ages of pedigree and loads of critical applause – there’s simply no reason to miss out! We only have a small quantity in our midst, so don’t let this pass you by!