Château Guiraud Sauternes Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 2005

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

Second Sauternes pairing with my homemade Pineapple Upside Down Cake. Didn’t use the additional crushed pineapple this time. Both preparations are very good. I think I prefer it w/ less pineapple. In 2014 I attended the Bordeaux En Premiere. One of the six days, we toured 8 Chateau’s tasting multiple vintages at each in Sauternes & Barsac. Then, went back to Chateau Guiraud for dinner. Before the dinner, Bill Blatch then arranged for a Sauternes tasting after tasting at 8 Chateau’s in Saternes & Barsac. We tasted 50 Sauternes in basically in 60 minutes. After that, my hand was like Winne the Poo in the honey jar from dumping. After, my wish wasn’t necessarily for the forthcoming dinner, but rather wished to go to a Dentist for a teeth cleaning I had so much RS in my mouth. None the less, dinner was fantastic and started with warm Foie Gras & gravy. Perfect as is w/ the Pineapple Upside Down Cake tonight. This 05 is everything that you taste in the Pineapple Upside Down Cake. Perfect paring. Newly a quarter century and no fading in its evolution. Dry; stone fruits, pineapple, orange citrus, pineapple. Marmalade, caramel, saline, limestone, honeycomb, beeswax, coconut, vanilla, saline, round acidity with yellow florals, toasted nuts with round acidity for days. Elegance, balance, structure and round, rich polish that goes in and on. Coravined from 375ml. Bill Batch (who worked for Cristy’s & owned his own negotiate company) has somewhere around 5,000 bottles of Sauternes. He does a Sauternes & Sausage party bi-annually. Good luck getting a well sought after invitation. There are more people in Bordeaux who want to attend then there are available invitations.

Peter Sultan

Columbia County 3.0: Apparently I’m one wine away from my 2,000th reviewed on Delectable, which is probably an odd milestone I would not have even conceived of when starting. What better way to celebrate than with the queen bee of wines (?), royalty w grace : an utterly intense & laser- focused Sauternes. Apricot & pineapple perfumed to the point of raising the rafters. Floods the mouth w quince, candied apricot & pineapple. This may be only its half life, & that’s understating it.

"Odedi"

This is a wonderful ending for the evening. A delicious Sauternes from a great vintage. A beautiful color of dark golden honey. Full bodied and oily with medium plus acidity. Sweet on the palate with nice complexity. Showing honey, yellow apples, spices, pears and tropical fruits. Nicely balanced and delicious by itself or with food. I paired it with liver Pâté. Needs 30 minutes to open up properly, so be patient. 13.5% alcohol by volume. 93 points.

Shengli Hu

Deep gold verging on amber. Sweet vanilla, a healthy dose of coconut, Xmas spices - cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice..., Graham cracker, butter cookie, passion fruit candy, lemon candy, honey, saffron, VA- geranium, creme brûlée, caramel, gravelly minerality, forest floor. High acid and long finish.

Conrad Green

Beautifully fresh and lifted. Bright honeyed fruit with honeysuckle and white flowers. Great balance and underpinning acidity.

Lee Pitofsky

Creamy and concentrated, notes of pineapple, apricot marmalade, honey and spices

Izek Jasper

This bottle seemed a little too advanced.

Brandon Pallen

Best Sauternes I've ever had, of course with a tag like 1st Grand Cru I kind of expected it. With 65% Semillon and 35% Sauvignon this wine drinks like liquid gold. Will just get better with age.

Peter Scudamore-Smith MW

Pudding wine; #bordeaux #sauternes #guiraud #2005 ; excellent composure; slow development; eminently fresh; 20+ yrs; 13.5%

Andrew S

Deep and unctuous. This has lots of spicy notes, big fruits and a toasty sweet spiced finish.