Wine Advisor
Rieussec 2011
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted blind at the Sauternes 2011 horizontal tasting. The Château Rieussec 2011 transcends its somewhat “middling” performance from barrel and delivers a knockout wine in bottle. For sure, it demonstrates a lot of vanilla from the new oak on the nose, complemented by almond, French patisserie and touches of white peach. The élevage is more expressive than the terroir at the moment, although there is clearly a lot of fruit underneath. The palate is very well balanced, with thickly textured honeyed fruits that lacquer the inside of the mouth and stay there. This is extremely well balanced but very young and primal, yet the crescendo of flavors is very impressive. Tasted blind, I hazarded a guess that this might be Yquem ’11. Enough said.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2011 Rieussec has a lifted, at the moment quite oaky, bouquet with scents of honey, almond and pineapple. Hopefully it will develop more definition by the time of bottling. The palate is medium-bodied with tropical fruit and mandarin on the entry and a satisfying viscous core of honeyed fruit. It seems a little disjointed towards the finish, although I am sure it will become more cohesive by the time of bottling. For me, it just seems a little predictable. Drink 2015-2028+.
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
Brilliant golden yellow. Knockout nose combines peach, citrus fruits, white flowers, saffron, honey and stone complicated by very pure lemony botrytis. Extremely deep and concentrated but youthfully closed, showing a powerful floral character to the peach, passion fruit and marzipan flavors. Finishes very long and perfumed; a laser beam of acidity gives this Sauternes exceptional clarity and cut.
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
(95% semillon, 3% muscadelle and 2% sauvignon blanc; 6 g/l total acidity; 147 g/l residual sugar): Dark yellow-gold. Spicy botrytis complicates aromas of fresh peach, passion fruit, rose water and marzipan, with an enticing floral quality providing lift. Suave and fine-grained, showing a more delicate than usual texture for this cuvee, with intense flavors of passion fruit, peach and saffron. A subtle, restrained example of Rieussec with nicely integrated acidity and very good finishing grip. Harvested between September 1 and November 2 in three to seven selective pickings per parcel.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2011 Rieussec has a lifted patisserie, almond-scented bouquet, touches of wild peach coming through with aeration. The palate is well balanced with a very unctuous entry, powerful and intense, almost heady in style with a persistent finish that coats the mouth. What a fabulous Sauternes. Tasted blind at the annual 10-Year-On tasting.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 2011 Rieussec, a blend of 95% Semillon, 2% Sauvignon Blanc and 3% Muscadelle is an absolute dream. There is wonderful precision and mineralité on the nose, the new oak more integrated than a few months ago. The palate is beautifully balanced with clear honey, brioche and pralines, a sensual Rieussec that is utterly charming, hints of nougat and almond lingering on the long finish. Gorgeous! Tasted April 2016.
About the Producer
Located in the Sauternes region of Bordeaux, France, Chateau Rieussec is renowned for its rich, sweet, noble-rotted white wines. In the 1855 Sauternes and Barsac classification, Château Rieussec was ranked at the top of the Sauternes classification pyramid, along with 10 other prestigious Sauternes chateaux as Premier Grand Cru Classe. In the 18th century, Chateau Rieussec was the property of the Carmelite monks of Langon. At the time of the Revolution, the Château was sold as "national property" to Mr Marheilhac, and in 1855, when the appellation's wines were classified, Château Les Cayes was owned by Mr Mayne. In this year, Château Les Gouttes was classified as a Grand Cru of Sauternes and Barsac for its excellent terroir. Over the next hundred years, the Château changed hands several times, under the management of Charles Crepin, Paul Defolie, the Gasqueton family and Albert Vuillier, who had a passion for Sauternes sweet wines. In 1984, Chateau Rieussec became part of the Domaines Barons de Rothschild Lafite estate and thus ushered in a period of significant growth. In order to exploit the full potential of this terroir, the Lafite group took a number of measures, such as the construction of a new cellar and winery, and the modernisation of the grape selection and pressing rooms. In addition, in order to guarantee the quality of the wines, the winery set higher standards for the raw materials used in the production of the wines, and as a result, the production of the main wines was significantly reduced from the 1990s onwards, and in 1993 production was stopped because the quality standards were not met. These measures have led to a major step forward in the quality of the wines and to the production of excellent wines. The vineyards of Chateau Rieussec are located in the hills of Sauternes and Fargues, adjacent to Chateau d'Yquem to the east. One of the largest wineries in Sauternes, Château Les Gouttes has 93 hectares of vineyards alone. The vineyards are planted with the typical Sauternes grape varieties, mainly Semillon, but also 7% Sauvignon Blanc and 3% Muscadelle. In terms of vineyard management, Château Lafite Les Grands Crus follows the Sauternes tradition of picking the grapes in batches according to their ripeness and the growth of the noble rot grapes. The manual rotational harvesting operation usually lasts from September to November, over a period of 6 to 8 weeks. The selection process is rigorous in order to produce the finest Sauternes noble rot white wines and the grapes are fermented in different batches of oak barrels depending on the plot. After fermentation, the winemaking team tastes the wines in barrels several times to determine which wines have the potential to become full-fledged wines. The wines are then matured in oak barrels for between 16 and 26 months, with frequent decanting and topping up. Finally, the bottling process takes place in the château. It is worth noting that the oak barrels are sourced from Lafite's own cooperage and that half of the old barrels are renewed each year. Chateau Rieussec (Sauternes, France) is the estate's signature wine. It is considered to be one of the best Sauternes sweet white noble rot wines, with a clever combination of Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Miscadelle. The annual production of this wine varies considerably depending on the vintage - in years with unfavourable weather conditions, such as 1977, 1993 and 2012, the estate abandoned this wine; in years when the weather was favourable, the wine was quite good, for example, the more recent vintages 2014 to 2017 were awarded a high score of 95+ by the Robert Parker Team. Robert Parker Team scores of 95+. The Carmes de Rieussec (Sauternes, France) is a secondary wine of the estate, made to the same standards as the main wine. This sweet white Jumbo is full-bodied and rich in aromas, with a rich citrus aroma on the palate and a complex and fresh style. Chateau Rieussec also offers a dry white wine, R de Rieussec, Bordeaux, France, 20% of which is fermented in oak barrels, with a fruity and refreshing bouquet and a small production.
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Package Size
12 x 75cl
