Rating:
90
Wine Spectator
"Alluring, with a lemon chiffon note out front, followed by racier chamomile, white peach and mirabelle plum flavors. The tangy, quinine-laced finish should settle in soon enough. Drink now through 2016"
Product Description:
Yet another impressive start to one of our best selling bottles of Bordeaux in the $20 and under price point ... and we're not talking red here. We are talking white. A stunning bottle that, at this price point, has had our customers coming back vintage after vintage.
Estate History:
"Chateau Guiraud was first known as the "Maison Noble du Bayle" before it was purchased by Pierre Guiraud in 1766. In 1799, Pierre bequeathed the estate to this son Louis, who would become the main figure to bring Chateau Guiraud to the level of prestige it possesses today. Louis knew how to make first-growth quality Sauternes. Due to poor planning by Louis, his son Pierre-Aman was forced to sell the estate in 1846. Since then, the estate has changed hands seven times, but not before being classified as "1er Grand Cru Classe Sauternes" in 1855. Today the cellar is run by the eternally-cool Xavier Planty who has been producing top Sauternes for nearly 25 years." - Importer
Vines:
""Le G" comes from a plot of 15 hectares located not far from the estate's Sauternes vines. As one would expect, these grapes are harvested before those of the Sauternes since "Le G" is a dry wine and the noble rot of the Sauternes, known as Botrytis, is not desired. The soils found in the various sectors of the 15 hectares include sand and gravel top-layers covering layers of red clay, limestone, fossilized oyster beds and white clay." - Importer
Cellar:
"All of "Le G" is barrel-fermented in barrels that were used for two vintages with the Sauternes. Batonage occurs over the course of the 6 to 9 month aging period in these Sauternes-enriched barrels. No malolactic fermentation is allowed to occur." - Importer