Notify me
2022 Sauternes “Esquisse”
Domaine de l'Alliance
Daniel Alibrand is among few producers still making Sauternes the old-fashioned way, making multiple passes through his vineyards to pick only the best grapes—sometimes berry by berry—most affected by botrytis. However, nature doesn’t allow this every year, as very specific conditions are conducive to the noble rot development required to make the most intense, concentrated wines.
In this sense, Esquisse is like a lightweight Sauternes: balanced, complex, and certainly sweet, but without the viscosity and distinctive smoky, earthy aromatics of grapes strongly impacted by botrytis. This refreshing dessert wine is therefore much more versatile at table—it works wonders as an apéritif or with cheeses—and can still be cellared for several years. This is a real treat from one of Sauternes’ last true artisans.
—Anthony Lynch
Wine Type: | dessert |
Vintage: | 2022 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | Sémillon |
Appellation: | IGP Atlantique |
Country: | France |
Region: | Bordeaux |
Producer: | Domaine de l'Alliance |
Winemaker: | Valérie & Daniel Alibrand |
Vineyard: | Average 50 years, 7 ha |
Soil: | Gravel, Clay, Sand |
Farming: | Organic (practicing) |
Alcohol: | 13% |
More from this Producer or Region

2022 Sauternes HALF BOTTLE
France | Bordeaux
It is a habit-forming apéritif with or without foie gras.

2018 Lalande-de-Pomerol
France | Bordeaux
A generous wine dominated by ripe black fruit with very supple, approachable tannins.

2021 Bordeaux Blanc “Les Joualles”
France | Bordeaux
Ripe and opulent, this is one of the Alibrands’ first-ever single-vineyard dry whites made from 100% Sémillon vinified and raised in oak.

2022 Sauternes
France | Bordeaux
Cap off your holiday feast with a glass of this heavenly Sauternes to experience pure luxury on the palate…

2017 Pomerol
France | Bordeaux
The incredible depth, power, and fine but grippingly youthful tannins are text-book Pomerol

2023 Bordeaux Blanc
France | Bordeaux
Luscious and mouth-coating with generous passion fruit and lychee, yet racy at the same time.

2021 Bordeaux Blanc “Définition”
France | Bordeaux
A simply stunning white that seems to not just elevate the food on your plate, but your entire mood. Your surroundings will melt away as you get lost in your glass.

2021 Bordeaux Sec “Les Clous”
France | Bordeaux
A nervy, age-worthy wine; it smells remarkably like top-notch Chablis, but on the palate hints at cool and tropical fruits like melon, lychee, and lime.

2022 Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
France | Bordeaux
Crafted from less than two hectares of organic grapes and vinified in a cramped garage, this is silky Saint-Emilion at its most seductive.

2020 Atlantique Blanc “Déclinaison”
France | Bordeaux
Artisanal white Bordeaux like you have never tasted before!

About The Producer
Domaine de l'Alliance
About The Region
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.
More from Bordeaux or France
2022 Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
Château Tertre de la Mouleyre France | Bordeaux
2019 Pomerol “Pom ‘N’ Roll”
Château Gombaude-Guillot France | Bordeaux
2020 Fronsac “Les Piverts”
Chateau Moulin France | Bordeaux
2021 Bordeaux Blanc “Les Joualles”
Domaine de l’Alliance France | Bordeaux
2017 Pomerol
Château Gombaude-Guillot France | Bordeaux
2018 Lalande-de-Pomerol
Château Belles-Graves France | Bordeaux
2016 Canon-Fronsac
Château Moulin Pey-Labrie France | Bordeaux
2020 Bordeaux Blanc “Définition”
Domaine de l’Alliance France | Bordeaux
2020 Sauternes
Domaine de l’Alliance France | Bordeaux
2015 Haut-Médoc
Château Aney France | Bordeaux
2011 Canon-Fronsac
B. & G. Hubau France | Bordeaux
2022 Graves Blanc “Les Fleurs de Graville”
Château Graville-Lacoste France | Bordeaux
2022 Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
Château Tertre de la Mouleyre France | Bordeaux
2019 Pomerol “Pom ‘N’ Roll”
Château Gombaude-Guillot France | Bordeaux
2020 Fronsac “Les Piverts”
Chateau Moulin France | Bordeaux
2021 Bordeaux Blanc “Les Joualles”
Domaine de l’Alliance France | Bordeaux
2017 Pomerol
Château Gombaude-Guillot France | Bordeaux
2018 Lalande-de-Pomerol
Château Belles-Graves France | Bordeaux
2016 Canon-Fronsac
Château Moulin Pey-Labrie France | Bordeaux
2020 Bordeaux Blanc “Définition”
Domaine de l’Alliance France | Bordeaux
2020 Sauternes
Domaine de l’Alliance France | Bordeaux
2015 Haut-Médoc
Château Aney France | Bordeaux
2011 Canon-Fronsac
B. & G. Hubau France | Bordeaux
2022 Graves Blanc “Les Fleurs de Graville”
Château Graville-Lacoste France | Bordeaux
Where the newsletter started

Where the newsletter started
Every three or four months I would send my clients a cheaply made list of my inventory, but it began to dawn on me that business did not pick up afterwards. It occurred to me that my clientele might not know what Château Grillet is, either. One month in 1974 I had an especially esoteric collection of wines arriving, so I decided to put a short explanation about each wine into my price list, to try and let my clients know what to expect when they uncorked a bottle. The day after I mailed that brochure, people showed up at the shop, and that is how these little propaganda pieces for fine wine were born.—Kermit Lynch