2005 Suduiraut, Sauternes

SKU #1053691 97 points James Suckling

What a wine for the vintage, with spices and furniture wax undertones, then dried citrus fruit. Great intensity in this, powerful stuff. Perhaps the best 2005. (3/ 2013)

96 points Wine & Spirits

Bright gold. Perfectly balanced. Not sweet, and yet explosively sweet with flavors of fresh nectarine, scents of jasmine and honeysuckle. The sweetness pours out of the freshness, so it's impossible to taste them apart. The flavors last, perhaps because it's the kind of wine you'll want to roll around in your mouth over and over. Glorious. (10/ 2008)

94 points Wine Enthusiast

Picked over a period of eight weeks, this wine shows the class and care resulting from such efforts. Citrus and white flower aromas lead to a wine that is not overtly rich, with subtle shades of botrytis and orange marmalade flavors. The acidity is vibrant, fresh, a great balance. (6/ 2008)

93 points Wine Spectator

Shows dried pineapple, honey, pear, caramel and piecrust aromas. Full-bodied and very sweet, with spice, coconut, tropical fruit and apple tart flavors. Long and dense, yet lively. Best after 2013. (3/ 2008)

92 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

Medium yellow-gold. Incredibly sweet aromas of apricot, acacia honey and marzipan. Supersweet, round and fat, but with enough ripe acidity to leaven the wine's huge impression of volume. A powerfully fruit-driven Sauternes with superb depth, but it's almost too rich today. Finishes with palate-staining sweetness and length and surprisingly fresh acidity (I suspect the actual acid number is low). I'd give this 15 years in the cellar. This is carrying a high 165 grams per liter of residual sugar, and the percentage of new oak was raised from a normal 35% to 65% for this vintage, and yet the wine does not come across as woody. (8/ 2008)