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2020 Sauternes

Domaine de l’Alliance
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The reasons to be overwhelmed with enthusiasm over Daniel and Valérie Alibrand’s Sauternes are bountiful, so I suggest asking one of our staff why we hold this producer in such high regard. To briefly outline it, this is truly artisanal Sauternes—made by hardworking farmers who are willing to sacrifice quantity for excellence. For example, the rigorous sorting to select the best fruit means making up to seven passes through the vineyards, picking berry by berry. The yields come out to around ten hectoliters per hectare—compare that to Château d’Yquem. Or you can forget the details and simply stick your nose into a glass of this divine nectar to comprehend our excitement.

Anthony Lynch

Discount Eligible $87.00
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Technical Information
Wine Type: dessert
Vintage: 2020
Bottle Size: 500mL
Blend: 85% Sémillon, 12% Sauvignon Blanc & Gris, 3% Muscadelle
Appellation: Sauternes
Country: France
Region: Bordeaux
Winemaker: Valérie & Daniel Alibrand
Vineyard: Average of 50 years
Soil: Gravel, Clay, Sand
Aging: 20% of wine is aged in new 350-L barrels, 20% in 350-L barrels of one passage, 60% in 225-L barrels of one, two, or three passages
Farming: Organic (practicing)
Alcohol: 13.5%

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About The Region

Bordeaux

map of Bordeaux

Often considered the wine capital of the world, Bordeaux and its wines have captured the minds, hearts, and wallets of wine drinkers for centuries. For many, the wines provide an inalienable benchmark against which all other wines are measured.

Bordeaux is divided into three winegrowing regions with the city that gives the region its name in the near geographical center. The “right bank,” or the area located east of the Dordogne River, produces wines that are predominantly Merlot with small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The “left bank” is located to the west of the Garonne River and produces wines dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, with Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot.

The third region, Entre-Deux-Mers, lies between both rivers and produces white wines from Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, and Muscadelle. Though technically in the left bank, it is worth noting the appellation of Sauternes, which produces arguably the world’s most famous sweet wines from Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, and Muscadelle as well.

Though many top Bordeaux wines are sold en primeur (in advance of their bottling) and often through a middleman known as a negoçiant, Kermit has always preferred to purchase directly from the winemaker. For more than three decades he has sought out small producers, who make classic Bordeaux wines and are willing to play outside the negoçiant system. This ethic has led to longstanding relationships, excellent prices, and perhaps most important—wines of great value and longevity.

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Kermit inspecting wine barrels

For the wines that I buy I insist that the winemaker leave them whole, intact. I go into the cellars now and select specific barrels or cuvées, and I request that they be bottled without stripping them with filters or other devices. This means that many of our wines will arrive with a smudge of sediment and will throw a more important deposit as time goes by, It also means the wine will taste better.

Discount Eligible $87.00
AT CART MAX