2020 - d'Yquem, Sauternes

The 2020 Château d'Yquem a blend of 75% Sémillon and 25% Sauvignon Blanc. It has 135 grams per liter of residual sugar and a pH of 3.79. Pale lemon-gold colored, citrus and baking spice notes emerge slowly from the glass, rising to offer well-defined scents of candied ginger, orange blossoms, allspice, and almond tart, leading to a flamboyant core of peach cobbler, ripe, juicy pineapple, jasmine tea, and apple butter with a waft of saffron. The palate is full-bodied and characteristically rich, yet possesses impressive tension and therefore stunning harmony. Layers of exotic spices and fragrant white flower accents fill the palate, leading to a long finish with lingering chalk and mineral nuances. It’s a showy Yquem that is gregarious in youth but is reserving that extra something for those with the patience to wait twenty years or more.

The 2020 Yquem has a slightly more Germanic nose than its peers, with a touch of petrol behind the veneer of dried honey, apricot and saffron. The palate is well balanced, with just a little oak to be subsumed. It’s very poised. Well-judged acidity drives through the harmonious finish. Give this three or four years in bottle for that wood to be assimilated, and you will have a sophisticated Sauternes on your hands (and a score in line with the one tasted at the estate in 2023). Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.

The 2020 d'Yquem presents a fresh bouquet with aromas of white fruits, orchard fruits and mango, complemented by a hint of spring flowers. It’s perfectly balanced and moderately weighted compared to other vintages, making it a tense, penetrating d’Yquem. Despite the challenges of the growing season and a brief harvest (which began on September 30th and concluded on October 12th), d'Yquem's team managed to produce a mere 40,000 bottles, a modest yield in recent years.

Tasted blind. Marzipan and apricots, complex and spicy. Deep, intense orange flavours and plenty of freshness to balance the viscous richness. Long bitter-orange aftertaste. Very good, especially in this vintage and this line-up. (JH)