Wine Advisor
Rayne Vigneau 2009
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2009 Rayne-Vigneau is one of the stars of the vintage. It has a very well defined, almost understated nose with white peach, apricot and lime leaf: very pretty and succinct. The palate is very well balanced, beautifully defined with real minerality showing through the viscous, botrytized fruit. Great tension here, effortlessly counterbalancing the richness to perfection.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Consistent notes to the bottle tasted at Southwold several weeks earlier. It has a well-defined bouquet with scents of spice, peach skin, mandarin and a slight marine-like accent that was noticeable on the 2008. The palate is well-balanced with a viscous entry. It has a candied purity with good acidity, although there is still some oak to be resolved on the finish. Give this beauty another two or three years to show what it can really do. Drink 2016-2030. Tasted April 2013.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2009 Rayne-Vigneau has a more conservative bouquet with neatly placed scents of dried honey and beeswax, a touch of Barsac barley sugar developing with time. The palate is medium-bodied with a very candied entry: orange zest, mandarin and a little barley sugar once again. It is well-balanced: clean and fresh, with good precision, if not the complexity, towards the finish. I suspect that this will improve in bottle over the next decade. Drink 2018-2035.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2009 Rayne-Vigneau has a more Barsac-like bouquet with orange pith, dried honey, quince and subtle white flower scents, not quite as detailed as the 2009 Doisy-Védrines, but still attractive. The palate is viscous on the entry with honeyed fruit laced with mandarin, quince and nutmeg. Good depth and grip with a touch of spice towards the long and captivating finish. Superb. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.
Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Pale gold colored, the 2009 Rayne-Vigneau is revealing scents of broom, green tea, fragrant earth and candied citrus peel with touches of Manuka honey and crème caramel. The evolving palate has a pleasant nuttiness complimenting the hedonic dried berry layers, finishing earthy/savory.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2009 Rayne-Vigneau has a more Barsac-like bouquet with orange pith, dried honey, quince and subtle white flower scents, not quite as detailed as the 2009 Doisy-Védrines, but still attractive. The palate is viscous on the entry with honeyed fruit laced with mandarin, quince and nutmeg. Good depth and grip with a touch of spice towards the long and captivating finish. Superb. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.
About the Producer
Located in the Sauternes region of Bordeaux, France, Château de Rayne Vigneau is a Premier Cru in the 1855 Classification of Sauternes and Barsac. Chateau de Rayne Vigneau dates back to the 17th century and was originally called Vigneau de Bomme, the name of the village of Bomme where the estate is located, plus the name of the Vigneau family who owned it. The name of Gabriel de Vigneau, then owner of the estate, already appears in a document dating from 1635. Gabriel's son, Etienne de Vigneau, married Jeanne Sauvage, the daughter of the owner of Chateau d'Yquem, and took over the affairs of the Vigneau in 1681. In 1834, Madame de Rayne bought the estate. Under Madame de Rayne's careful management, the château was awarded a First Growth in the official Sauternes and Barsac classification in 1855. In 1961, the vineyards and equipment were sold and the château, outbuildings and gardens were preserved. From 2004 to 2015, Rayne de Vigneau was part of CA Grands Crus, a subsidiary of the Credit Agricole Group, and during this time, under the direction of Anne Le Naour, the overall quality of the wines was greatly improved. Today, Château Vignon is a property of the Tresor du Patrimoine group and is managed by its manager Vincent Labergere and oenological consultant Denis Dubourdieu. The vineyard is ideally located on a hill overlooking the Sauternes region and covers 84 hectares with vines of an average age of 30 years. The soil of the vineyard consists of clay and gravel. The vineyard is planted with 74% Semillon, 24% Sauvignon Blanc and 2% Muscadelle. Influenced by the Ciron and Garonne rivers, the vineyards are often blessed with morning fog in late summer and early autumn, which allows the growth of Botrytis Cinerea. The infection of the grapes with Botrytis cinerea further concentrates the sugars and flavours in the fruit, making the wines produced by the estate even sweeter and more aromatic. The winery takes great care in the production of its Sauternes sweet white wines. At Chateau de Rayne Vigneau, the grapes are hand-picked to ensure that each grape is picked in perfect condition by the noble rot bacteria. In accordance with traditional procedures, the grapes are then hand-selected. In the winery, the meticulous craftsmanship of the vineyard naturally extends to the winery, where the grapes undergo a rigorous secondary screening process on the sorting table before being pressed and then fermented and aged in oak barrels with a 40%-50% new barrel ratio. Chateau de Rayne Vigneau currently produces four wines. The main wine is the Chateau de Rayne Vigneau, Sauternes, France, which has become a model of quality in Sauternes, with its freshness, aromatic intensity and long aftertaste. The secondary wine, Madame de Rayne, Sauternes, France, named in honour of Madame Rayne's contribution to the estate, has a more feminine and approachable style than the main wine. The estate also produces two other wines, Le Sec de Rayne Vigneau, Bordeaux, France, and Gold de Rayne Vigneau, Sauternes, France, a sweet white wine.
