De Fargues 1997

robert_parker93

Reviewed by: Neal Martin

Comte Alexandre Luc de Saluces rates this within the top five vintages of the estate. The weather during harvest was excellent and the first trie was carried out between September 15-19, stretching out until November 4, over five tries in total. It has a lower residual sugar level than recent vintages, 116 grams-per-liter and an alcohol level of 13.45%. It has a quintessential de Fargues bouquet with scents of brown sugar, mandarin, over-ripe Satsuma and just a whiff of chlorine. The palate is very well balanced with crisp acidity and very fine tension. It is a little leaner than more recent vintages, thanks to the modest residual sugar levels, but it builds suggestively toward a relatively drier, but beautifully defined mandarin and dried orange peel finish. What a fabulous Sauternes – but alas only 15,000 bottles were produced. Tasted April 2013.