1985 Chateau de Beaulon "Privee" Vieux Pineau des Charentes Blanc (750ml)

There is old Pineau, and then there is something like this. Château de Beaulon's Collection Privée Blanc comes from the remarkable 1985 vintage and has evolved for more than three decades into a wine of almost astonishing depth and complexity. Built around Sémillon with Sauvignon, it has moved far beyond the familiar realm of Pineau des Charentes, developing layer upon layer of preserved citrus, dried apricot, honey, exotic spice, vanilla and deeply concentrated fruit. The texture is immense, the finish seemingly endless, yet the wine retains the freshness and structure necessary to carry all that richness. At this level, the most meaningful comparison is not with other Pineau, but with the greatest mature sweet wines of Bordeaux. The depth, complexity and sheer grandeur would not feel out of place alongside a great old Sauternes or Barsac. That a wine of this age and quality remains so little known is extraordinary. This is a genuinely profound old sweet wine and one of the most remarkable bottles to emerge from the Charente.