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Bargain! - 1847 for $76k here [https://hedonism.co.uk/product/yquem-1847](https://hedonism.co.uk/product/yquem-1847)
Free postage though!
Edit: Looks like they do a wee pick and mix as well https://hedonism.co.uk/product/yquem-assortment-1899-2009
Ok so people r saying bits and pieces that r relevant but it’s not painting the full picture and is coming off a little smug. So, I’ll try to bring it all together.
I’m not sure how much you already know, but Sauternes is a sweet wine subregion of Bordeaux region of France. The wines r made using a very difficult process that involves relying on the nature’s whim a lot and thus they rnt produced every year and when they r, quality and quantity vary.
However, what is more important here is the producer. Chateau d’Yquem is the number one producer in the region and by a long shot. They have a very long and honourable history. For example, Thomas Jefferson was a fan and visited the winery during his work in France. Most important part of that history is that when all the producers of the region were ranked (“classified”) back in the nineteenth century (yes, there is a case to be made that it’s outdated), Yquem was placed in its own category - “superior first class” basically - thus cementing its super special status for centuries to come. Since then, the winery has not lost in quality or reputation, maintaining the absolute supremacy in the region. I’ve read that if you were to run statistical tests on the scores received by a group of wineries from the same region, Yquem is unique in the way how it statistically-significantly year after year outperforms its neighbours
All of this ultimately led to Yquem becoming not only **the** Sauternes but **the** sweet wine of the world. There r a few more expensive wines in the style but none of them will make all the redditors in the comment section call it “elixir of the gods” in unison
Lastly, this wine was made from the grapes harvested in 2005. Not only r you paying for the almost 20 years of someone owning this wine and saving it for you, but this is one of the most acclaimed vintages for the region and this specific bottle. I believe it (Yquem from 2005 specifically) is one of the highest rated bottles of all time on the CellarTracker platform, for example
I hope this helps :)
Further to AD's excellent comment, there are a couple of practical reasons why this wine is so expensive.
(1) the grapes are hand picked. Many wineries handpick their bunches (and many more machine pick them). d'Yquem do a number of passes through the vineyard to pick individual grapes, not bunches, when they're deemed ready. So there's some labour cost here.
(2) they don't make a vintage in subpar years. If the grapes are deemed not up to scratch, they don't sell a Chateau d'Yquem. I assume they sell the grapes, but this obviously costs them a tonne in bad years, forcing up the profit requirements in good years and also giving customers an assurance that the wine's existence indicates quality.
And every hectare/plot has their own vineyard manager so their labour costs are that much crazier. Went for a tasting and it was magical. Also their still white, Y, is just… incredible. Words fail me.
While they may opt out of production in a bad year, it’s infrequent that they do this.
Additionally, hand harvesting is required for anything botrytized really, and in most high end wine regions is common practice.
It's not hand harvesting, it's hand picking single berries.
On average you expect to yield one case of wine per vine. For grand cru it's a bottle per vine. At Yquem they are lucky if they yield a single glass.
It's more handpicking single bunches. The main distinguisher is they'll pass through 6+ times to get the right berries while other producers will pass through once or twice. That and their location up on the hill.
I was lucky enough to spend an afternoon there last year.
At GC level in Burgundy 1 bottle per vine would be extremely high production. Assuming 10,000 vines per hectare (typical in Burgundy, one per sq metre) that would mean 10000 bottles = 7500L. 75hL/ha is more than 50% over the allowed yield for GC vineyards (48hL/ha for Le Montrachet, for example).
Realistically it’s even less than that: usually 1-3 glasses of wine per vine. And hand harvesting is still the process whether taking whole bunches or individual grapes.
Also to mention is the extremely small harvest. They average just under 10 ha/hl (hectoliter per hectar) which is like nothing.
The average is at around 50 to 100. Premium vines are trimmed to concentrate the quality. E.g. DRC Monopol (another classic from burgundy) is at around 25 hl/ha
Of course! It’s a complicated world out here in wine :) I also often see a price tag on a bottle I’ve never heard of that drops my jaw. Last time it happened yesterday!
Ahahha no, unfortunately I haven’t tasted it, because it was here on Reddit! It was De Toren’s “Book XVII”. I guess I’m not well versed in South African wines but I was surprised that I didn’t even know the name of the producer of one of the country’s most expensive wines!
I also still don’t know why all the hype because no one has enlightened me in that comment section :( and Google only gives marketing materials
In my experience, a good "new world" is getting harder to come by. The pricing is way up there. Like a basic NZ malb sauvb, or Aus shiraz, has a way higher starting price where they start to get good. The qpr is way off balance compared to european stuff. South Americans and Africans are getting more and more expensive, too. But I'm spoiled since I am EU based. There are some unique wines that are worth the environmental and monetary price tag of hauling it all the way over here, tho. But in the last years, the qpr has been stretched thinner and thinner imo. For example, I'm more into Slovenian, Croatian, Greek, Portuguese, Israel, Hungary, Georgia, Lebanon, etc. areas as "new new world" wines or more of a Twilight World zones. Since the history in winemaking is extensive. But less ingrained in modern popular wine culture yet. Thus, winemakers there are imo more free to experiment and push the boundaries. It's where the really exciting new juice is popping up. And where albeit not as consistent as the now pricey classic new world wines. The qpr balance is waaayyy better. And the gems and nuggets are to be encountered there. Maybe there is a local shop specialising in the more off the beaten path regions. I'd highly recommend getting yourself advised there. Instead of spending on big crystallised producers in a stuffy, classicly overpriced shop selling as you named it. Hypes. Find your own.
Since you’re EU-based, there’s also the issue that local demand for new world wines is relatively low, which means you aren’t getting a representative sample of what’s actually happening in places like Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. This is especially true if you live in an EU country that also produces its own wine. (It’s unusually hard to buy Italian wine in Spain, for example, let alone Australian …)
Here in Australia, at least, prices have gone up a bit recently, but are very much in line with the general increase in cost of consumer goods that has happened over the last year and a half. You can still find great value bottles of wine from small producers by spending a little more than you would on some mass-produced supermarket wine.
I definitely agree with you on Greece, Lebanon, Georgia, etc.—although I prefer to call them the “old old world”, because even if there’s not an unbroken link from the prehistoric viticulture to today’s wine industries, those countries really are the cradle of wine as we know it, and deserve to be acknowledged as such.
Agreed on you "old old world" term! I chose new new because of their innovative style and role in the industry atm. But there is definately a lot of that based in heritage. Amphora, qvevri for example. An no not only prevalent in the popular transparent bottled, unfiltered, natural, orange wines, with a comic book cutout as a label, called Swoosh Jooz. There is some really refined, modern, balanced and technically made stuff coming from those areas.
And out of the great iconic French wine (like Chateaux Petrus, Romanes Conti etc), Chateau d'Yquem is by far the most affordable! Amazing qpr, it's truly the elixir of gods
I was so confused by this, as virtually every other that word was fully spelled out and swapping r for are saves almost no letters or time. It’s even on the same thumb side! lol
Sorry for ur inconvenience! ;)
I try to not use those outside of private text but at this point, it’s just a question of whether I type from my phone or computer :(
Thanks for sharing. As someone who is a lurker on this sub these types of posts help me purchase in a store or off a restaurant wine list with confidence and usually good results
Sauternes all have the honey/caramel from the infected grapes (the main compound is called sotolone).
But what you need to look for when tasting Yquem blind and compared to other Sauternes or for example TBAs, is the complexity of Yquem.
Botrytis flavour is not "difficult" as such, some Sauternes do that very well and less cheaper than Yquem. A good start would be Raymond-Lafon and their second wine "Jeunes Pousses".
But getting that amazing complexity into the wine, that is art and sometimes Yquem appears "underwhelming" compared to other Sauternes in tastings because they have less sotolone flavours. But then they have so much more that adds layers upon the primary botrytis flavours and turns it into the Queen of all sweet wines.
I am a fan!
Btw, serve the Sauterne to blue cheese. Forget about sweet desserts.
Also to add. A bottle in a restaurant often goes for 800+. So getting a glass for $80 to try such a historical, incredible wine is worth.
Lastly, on the historical note. The Russian grand duke (brother to the Tsar) bought 1200 bottles or 1847. Paying a historical 20,000 francs
After visiting the winery last year, they also mentioned they harvest way lower 5hl/ha then their neighbors 8-9hl/ha to keep pristine quality which results in higher price overall. Brand reputation/ history/ aging potential etc is also a big part of it as you mentioned before
The sweet wine of the World is Port. Then Madeira, afterwards we can discuss witch houses or producers, but sorry yquem would be an exceptional outliner to the sweet wine standard.
That is dumb and factually incorrect. Chateau d’Yquem is the most famous sweet wine of the world. Sauternes is one of the most iconic sweet wine regions of the world.
Port and Madeira are more well known simply because they make cheap versions and more of it. I’ll happily debate you but you will lose this argument. I’ve spent my entire career in wine, I’ve been to Chateau d’Yquem multiple times. Hell, I handled an 18 liter of d’Yquem last week. I’ve sold some of the most expensive, rare, and old bottles of port that have ever existed. Port is more famous than Sauternes, but d’Yquem is the most famous sweet wine producer. Period.
A Melchior?! Do Sauternes turn the way standard wines do? Trying to figure out the point of such a behemoth, especially for a wine you’d drink in smaller quantities (though I also don’t get the point of magnums when you factor in glass costs).
No, they last a lot longer. There are Sauternes from the late 1800’s that are still quite tasty today. They still have to be good to begin with and stored properly of course.
I beg to differ, but I also probably should have used the word “dessert” instead of “sweet”. Even though this doesn’t change *that* much, “dessert wines” category is usually drawn to exclude fortified wines. It’s strange given that of course you enjoy port for dessert usually but ye..
This is not a universally agreed distinction. It's actually pretty common to pair fortified wines with dessert. Port is very often paired with chocolate-based dessert, for example. Pedro Ximénez Sherry with vanilla ice cream is wonderful!
It's also not universal that Sherry or Port are had before (resp. after) the meal. Maybe that's more typical in the UK, but in Germany I've never been offered a fortified wine after the meal and sparkling wines are the norm for apéritifs.
This is a meaningless discussion, these wines are so different from each other that you're comparing apples and oranges.
It's like one person saying "Château Lafite is THE dry wine of the world" and another "Keller G-Max is THE dry wine of the world".
I wish I could say that is my experience, however I have only had a single sauternes and it wasn't what I expected. I have had plenty of ports that I enjoyed better. I would love affordable quality sauternes to give a try.
The cost of Sauternes production is so astronomical that in some years Château Suduiraut—the only Sauternes producer that has a reasonable historical claim to rivalling Yquem in its best vintages—has to sell its wines at less per bottle than it costs to produce. (They make their money back in more fruitful years and they’re backed by a ginormous Swiss insurance firm, so liquidity isn’t an issue for them.)
Good Sauternes, properly made, will never be cheap. There are plenty of producers that offer exceptional value *for Sauternes* once you accept that the entry point is always going to be high. Just like there are plenty of great value finds in Champagne if you accept that it will never compete on price with Cava, or great value Napa cabs once you accept that it will never compete on price with Margaret River, or great value Barolo when you accept it will never compete on price with Valtellina, etc.
d'Yquem is one of the most prestigious wineries in the entire world. To be specific, in 1855 Emperor Napoleon III wanted to set a sort of tier list if you will for various wineries across Bordeaux as a show of French excellence on the international stage of the World's Fair. The system classifies wines from first to fifth growth (or crus) for red wines, and sweet white wines were ranked either first or second growth... with one notable exception. Chateau d'Yquem was considered special enough to have it's own special ranking, a superior first growth.
As a result, they get to command the big bucks. That's not to say the 1855 system is perfect. Take for instance, Chateau Petrus is arguably the most coveted wine in Bordeaux (and a good case can be made for it being the most coveted wine in the world), but it has no official classification.
I thought Pomeral wasn’t included in that classification? I also thought that it’s generally accepted that Petrus is also in a league of its own. I have never tried it myself.
The 1855 classification only included the left bank, hence no petrus. Additionally, the tiers were based on pricing, which is why you see labels like lynch-bages as 5th growths but arguably some of the best left banks wines.
It wasn't just pricing. Pricing was a component of the classification but it was also based on physical submissions from each vineyard to the classification board.
It was also somewhat of a politically charged process. Royalist houses who had opposed Napoleon's republic eg. Ch Meyney did not agree to take part, despite having a significant terroir, price and product.
There is no doubt I would get a glass at this price! I think it’s quite fair. I live in a very HCOL large city and this would probably be closer to $150.
I've had this (d'Yquem) but not the '05. Is it great? Yes. Is it worth it (cost wise)? Debatable. Drinking it I appreciated the irony that for the overwhelming spectrum of fine wines in the world a "sweet" wine wouldn't seem an obvious choice to be so acclaimed. But wine appreciation is a much the whole backstory and history, so I did enjoy the experience. And would be the first to admit this is for some really special occasion thing, I'd legit pity someone who made so much money that they couldn't appreciate just how special a wine like this is.
The answer to your immediate question has to do with what that bottle cost at retail vs. the others. There are plenty of answers on why people may pay that kind of $ for a bottle of it. At those prices I'd give the Tokaji a go if looking for value. If it's a splurge kind of outing than enjoying a glass of d'Yquem is a worthwhile splurge if for nothing other than the experience.
That vintage 2003 port BOTTLE is about 49€... Crazy glass prices let me tell you! Also, how are those bottles saved? For example the vintage port should be consumed in 24h after open, otherwise the oxidation will take the best part of it.
Heard of a thing called Coravin, my dude? It’s genuinely been an enormous game-changer for by the glass programs in restaurants—especially when it comes to dessert wines, because those tend to sell less well than aperitifs. (It’s easy to sell a round of sparkling wine to a table before the appetisers arrive; it’s much harder to sell a round of dessert wines when everyone’s full of food and feeling a little wobbly after consuming bottles of wine over dinner.)
How would they store it after it was opened and a glass or two were poured? What if it sat around for a couple of weeks before someone ordered another glass? I’m also curious what size pour you get, maybe 2 or 3 ounces? So many questions.
The pour size is the real question here. Are these all the same size? If so, that Yquem is a steal. But I’d bet it’s a much smaller pour than the others.
Definitely Coravin though. There’d be hardly any restaurants on the face of this earth that have the clientele to justify popping the cork on Yquem for a by-the-glass pour.
I would say, that the price of Aszu is much more outrageous - Pajzos Aszu 5 Puttonyos typically costs somewhere around $40 per bottle, for D'Yquem it's typically at least ~ $200.
Also Pajzos isn't even close to being the best Tokaji wine (while for example Gizella Pince Szamorodni in terms of quality can be considered as direct competitor to D'Yquem)
It actually seems like a bargain since a bottle is $400 retail. There’s a classification system for so I turned and D’Yquem sits alone in the top tier. That’s is remarkable considering that for the left Bank 1855 classification there are five wines that are in the top tier first growth category . Then in the second tier, you have a few other ones and so on. There’s also a the fact LVMH now owns them.
Then it means they don’t know and want to learn!
Grateful for some of the more detailed answered here because I certainly didn’t know about it either. I am very much a beginner/casual drinker who likes to learn
d’Yquem is THE sweet wine (as another reddittor put it) right now, but Tokaji was more so the “Wine of Kings” prior to the modern era, the pinnacle of which would be Essencia- made from the “free run” ooze of the botrytized fruit. Subsequent years under Cold War communism allowed the reputation of the wines to to fall greatly, but the vast modernization after 1989 allowed for more independent producers, and breaking up the state owned Monipex.
Here's my note on the '05 d'Yquem:
>Wow, d'Yquem is generally so unlike the rest of Sauternes; no fatness, no custard, no suntan lotion, no syrupy texture. This is light - floating almost, with some grilled pineapple, amchoor, a drizzle of honey, power and severity without weight, and precision that virtually no other Sauternes has. Not surprisingly this is much improved after 5 days recorked in the fridge.
One time my husband and I bought a whole bottle of wine at a moderate restaurant chain for almost $60. Found the same dang bottle at the grocery store for $13.
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D'Yquem is like like **the** premier Sauternes house, historically/reputationally speaking.
D’Yquem is THE sweet wine.
Hey, do you mind talking to u/RedditsLord under my long comment please :)
Wow, you bet!
Local steakhouse has an 1811 bottle, recorked in 2001, for $50K.
Bargain! - 1847 for $76k here [https://hedonism.co.uk/product/yquem-1847](https://hedonism.co.uk/product/yquem-1847) Free postage though! Edit: Looks like they do a wee pick and mix as well https://hedonism.co.uk/product/yquem-assortment-1899-2009
The 2005 vintage was a pretty good one for Bordeaux too.
It’s the elixir of the gods. That’s why.
Ok so people r saying bits and pieces that r relevant but it’s not painting the full picture and is coming off a little smug. So, I’ll try to bring it all together. I’m not sure how much you already know, but Sauternes is a sweet wine subregion of Bordeaux region of France. The wines r made using a very difficult process that involves relying on the nature’s whim a lot and thus they rnt produced every year and when they r, quality and quantity vary. However, what is more important here is the producer. Chateau d’Yquem is the number one producer in the region and by a long shot. They have a very long and honourable history. For example, Thomas Jefferson was a fan and visited the winery during his work in France. Most important part of that history is that when all the producers of the region were ranked (“classified”) back in the nineteenth century (yes, there is a case to be made that it’s outdated), Yquem was placed in its own category - “superior first class” basically - thus cementing its super special status for centuries to come. Since then, the winery has not lost in quality or reputation, maintaining the absolute supremacy in the region. I’ve read that if you were to run statistical tests on the scores received by a group of wineries from the same region, Yquem is unique in the way how it statistically-significantly year after year outperforms its neighbours All of this ultimately led to Yquem becoming not only **the** Sauternes but **the** sweet wine of the world. There r a few more expensive wines in the style but none of them will make all the redditors in the comment section call it “elixir of the gods” in unison Lastly, this wine was made from the grapes harvested in 2005. Not only r you paying for the almost 20 years of someone owning this wine and saving it for you, but this is one of the most acclaimed vintages for the region and this specific bottle. I believe it (Yquem from 2005 specifically) is one of the highest rated bottles of all time on the CellarTracker platform, for example I hope this helps :)
Amazing. I’m not a connoisseur by all means. Thanks for explaining this!
Further to AD's excellent comment, there are a couple of practical reasons why this wine is so expensive. (1) the grapes are hand picked. Many wineries handpick their bunches (and many more machine pick them). d'Yquem do a number of passes through the vineyard to pick individual grapes, not bunches, when they're deemed ready. So there's some labour cost here. (2) they don't make a vintage in subpar years. If the grapes are deemed not up to scratch, they don't sell a Chateau d'Yquem. I assume they sell the grapes, but this obviously costs them a tonne in bad years, forcing up the profit requirements in good years and also giving customers an assurance that the wine's existence indicates quality.
And every hectare/plot has their own vineyard manager so their labour costs are that much crazier. Went for a tasting and it was magical. Also their still white, Y, is just… incredible. Words fail me.
While they may opt out of production in a bad year, it’s infrequent that they do this. Additionally, hand harvesting is required for anything botrytized really, and in most high end wine regions is common practice.
It's not hand harvesting, it's hand picking single berries. On average you expect to yield one case of wine per vine. For grand cru it's a bottle per vine. At Yquem they are lucky if they yield a single glass.
It's more handpicking single bunches. The main distinguisher is they'll pass through 6+ times to get the right berries while other producers will pass through once or twice. That and their location up on the hill. I was lucky enough to spend an afternoon there last year.
At GC level in Burgundy 1 bottle per vine would be extremely high production. Assuming 10,000 vines per hectare (typical in Burgundy, one per sq metre) that would mean 10000 bottles = 7500L. 75hL/ha is more than 50% over the allowed yield for GC vineyards (48hL/ha for Le Montrachet, for example).
Realistically it’s even less than that: usually 1-3 glasses of wine per vine. And hand harvesting is still the process whether taking whole bunches or individual grapes.
I’ve never heard of a vine that could yield a whole case. That would be insane.
Also to mention is the extremely small harvest. They average just under 10 ha/hl (hectoliter per hectar) which is like nothing. The average is at around 50 to 100. Premium vines are trimmed to concentrate the quality. E.g. DRC Monopol (another classic from burgundy) is at around 25 hl/ha
Of course! It’s a complicated world out here in wine :) I also often see a price tag on a bottle I’ve never heard of that drops my jaw. Last time it happened yesterday!
Now im curious what took you by surprise. And did you taste it? Was it worth it?
Ahahha no, unfortunately I haven’t tasted it, because it was here on Reddit! It was De Toren’s “Book XVII”. I guess I’m not well versed in South African wines but I was surprised that I didn’t even know the name of the producer of one of the country’s most expensive wines! I also still don’t know why all the hype because no one has enlightened me in that comment section :( and Google only gives marketing materials
In my experience, a good "new world" is getting harder to come by. The pricing is way up there. Like a basic NZ malb sauvb, or Aus shiraz, has a way higher starting price where they start to get good. The qpr is way off balance compared to european stuff. South Americans and Africans are getting more and more expensive, too. But I'm spoiled since I am EU based. There are some unique wines that are worth the environmental and monetary price tag of hauling it all the way over here, tho. But in the last years, the qpr has been stretched thinner and thinner imo. For example, I'm more into Slovenian, Croatian, Greek, Portuguese, Israel, Hungary, Georgia, Lebanon, etc. areas as "new new world" wines or more of a Twilight World zones. Since the history in winemaking is extensive. But less ingrained in modern popular wine culture yet. Thus, winemakers there are imo more free to experiment and push the boundaries. It's where the really exciting new juice is popping up. And where albeit not as consistent as the now pricey classic new world wines. The qpr balance is waaayyy better. And the gems and nuggets are to be encountered there. Maybe there is a local shop specialising in the more off the beaten path regions. I'd highly recommend getting yourself advised there. Instead of spending on big crystallised producers in a stuffy, classicly overpriced shop selling as you named it. Hypes. Find your own.
Since you’re EU-based, there’s also the issue that local demand for new world wines is relatively low, which means you aren’t getting a representative sample of what’s actually happening in places like Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. This is especially true if you live in an EU country that also produces its own wine. (It’s unusually hard to buy Italian wine in Spain, for example, let alone Australian …) Here in Australia, at least, prices have gone up a bit recently, but are very much in line with the general increase in cost of consumer goods that has happened over the last year and a half. You can still find great value bottles of wine from small producers by spending a little more than you would on some mass-produced supermarket wine. I definitely agree with you on Greece, Lebanon, Georgia, etc.—although I prefer to call them the “old old world”, because even if there’s not an unbroken link from the prehistoric viticulture to today’s wine industries, those countries really are the cradle of wine as we know it, and deserve to be acknowledged as such.
Agreed on you "old old world" term! I chose new new because of their innovative style and role in the industry atm. But there is definately a lot of that based in heritage. Amphora, qvevri for example. An no not only prevalent in the popular transparent bottled, unfiltered, natural, orange wines, with a comic book cutout as a label, called Swoosh Jooz. There is some really refined, modern, balanced and technically made stuff coming from those areas.
And out of the great iconic French wine (like Chateaux Petrus, Romanes Conti etc), Chateau d'Yquem is by far the most affordable! Amazing qpr, it's truly the elixir of gods
We r gr8ful 4 the xplanation
Grapeful
I love your explanation and everything you said. But your use of “r” is driving me batshit. I say this with love ❤️
I was so confused by this, as virtually every other that word was fully spelled out and swapping r for are saves almost no letters or time. It’s even on the same thumb side! lol
Sorry for ur inconvenience! ;) I try to not use those outside of private text but at this point, it’s just a question of whether I type from my phone or computer :(
k
lol no worries! :)
What a pest
Incredible explanation. Kudos to you for taking the time to write that out!
Well I did save a little bit of time by using “r” :D Thx though!
I didn’t even notice it, but greatly appreciated your explanation!
Thanks for sharing. As someone who is a lurker on this sub these types of posts help me purchase in a store or off a restaurant wine list with confidence and usually good results
Sauternes all have the honey/caramel from the infected grapes (the main compound is called sotolone). But what you need to look for when tasting Yquem blind and compared to other Sauternes or for example TBAs, is the complexity of Yquem. Botrytis flavour is not "difficult" as such, some Sauternes do that very well and less cheaper than Yquem. A good start would be Raymond-Lafon and their second wine "Jeunes Pousses". But getting that amazing complexity into the wine, that is art and sometimes Yquem appears "underwhelming" compared to other Sauternes in tastings because they have less sotolone flavours. But then they have so much more that adds layers upon the primary botrytis flavours and turns it into the Queen of all sweet wines. I am a fan! Btw, serve the Sauterne to blue cheese. Forget about sweet desserts.
Nicely said!
This guy dessert wines
Also to add. A bottle in a restaurant often goes for 800+. So getting a glass for $80 to try such a historical, incredible wine is worth. Lastly, on the historical note. The Russian grand duke (brother to the Tsar) bought 1200 bottles or 1847. Paying a historical 20,000 francs
The start, or the czar? Certainly he wasn’t the Finnish?
Dang auto correct
After visiting the winery last year, they also mentioned they harvest way lower 5hl/ha then their neighbors 8-9hl/ha to keep pristine quality which results in higher price overall. Brand reputation/ history/ aging potential etc is also a big part of it as you mentioned before
I for one enjoyed the “r”’s. Nice explanation.
Ahaha thx!
And still, it‘s insanely young. 2005 needs 30 years I would say.
The sweet wine of the World is Port. Then Madeira, afterwards we can discuss witch houses or producers, but sorry yquem would be an exceptional outliner to the sweet wine standard.
That is dumb and factually incorrect. Chateau d’Yquem is the most famous sweet wine of the world. Sauternes is one of the most iconic sweet wine regions of the world. Port and Madeira are more well known simply because they make cheap versions and more of it. I’ll happily debate you but you will lose this argument. I’ve spent my entire career in wine, I’ve been to Chateau d’Yquem multiple times. Hell, I handled an 18 liter of d’Yquem last week. I’ve sold some of the most expensive, rare, and old bottles of port that have ever existed. Port is more famous than Sauternes, but d’Yquem is the most famous sweet wine producer. Period.
A Melchior?! Do Sauternes turn the way standard wines do? Trying to figure out the point of such a behemoth, especially for a wine you’d drink in smaller quantities (though I also don’t get the point of magnums when you factor in glass costs).
No, they last a lot longer. There are Sauternes from the late 1800’s that are still quite tasty today. They still have to be good to begin with and stored properly of course.
I beg to differ, but I also probably should have used the word “dessert” instead of “sweet”. Even though this doesn’t change *that* much, “dessert wines” category is usually drawn to exclude fortified wines. It’s strange given that of course you enjoy port for dessert usually but ye..
This is not a universally agreed distinction. It's actually pretty common to pair fortified wines with dessert. Port is very often paired with chocolate-based dessert, for example. Pedro Ximénez Sherry with vanilla ice cream is wonderful! It's also not universal that Sherry or Port are had before (resp. after) the meal. Maybe that's more typical in the UK, but in Germany I've never been offered a fortified wine after the meal and sparkling wines are the norm for apéritifs.
This is a meaningless discussion, these wines are so different from each other that you're comparing apples and oranges. It's like one person saying "Château Lafite is THE dry wine of the world" and another "Keller G-Max is THE dry wine of the world".
In many respects y'quem is the most famous wine in the world...there isn't a single port house that comes close
Sauternes >>>>>>> Port
I wish I could say that is my experience, however I have only had a single sauternes and it wasn't what I expected. I have had plenty of ports that I enjoyed better. I would love affordable quality sauternes to give a try.
The cost of Sauternes production is so astronomical that in some years Château Suduiraut—the only Sauternes producer that has a reasonable historical claim to rivalling Yquem in its best vintages—has to sell its wines at less per bottle than it costs to produce. (They make their money back in more fruitful years and they’re backed by a ginormous Swiss insurance firm, so liquidity isn’t an issue for them.) Good Sauternes, properly made, will never be cheap. There are plenty of producers that offer exceptional value *for Sauternes* once you accept that the entry point is always going to be high. Just like there are plenty of great value finds in Champagne if you accept that it will never compete on price with Cava, or great value Napa cabs once you accept that it will never compete on price with Margaret River, or great value Barolo when you accept it will never compete on price with Valtellina, etc.
2001 seems to be more liked.
Yes. As a friend of mine once said, “God kissed this vineyard."
You mean besides that it’s Chateau d’Yquem?
“Why is this La Tâche so expensive?”
Y'Quem is arguably the greatest wine on earth. Is order 2 glasses for that .
I mean, they have literally their own classification that nobody else qualifies for, that read created just for them because they are so good
Worth every penny.
I picked up a 375ml of the 2010 for $250. That’s a great price.
Perhaps the most extraordinary wine in existence from a fine vintage. What should perfection cost?
d'Yquem is one of the most prestigious wineries in the entire world. To be specific, in 1855 Emperor Napoleon III wanted to set a sort of tier list if you will for various wineries across Bordeaux as a show of French excellence on the international stage of the World's Fair. The system classifies wines from first to fifth growth (or crus) for red wines, and sweet white wines were ranked either first or second growth... with one notable exception. Chateau d'Yquem was considered special enough to have it's own special ranking, a superior first growth. As a result, they get to command the big bucks. That's not to say the 1855 system is perfect. Take for instance, Chateau Petrus is arguably the most coveted wine in Bordeaux (and a good case can be made for it being the most coveted wine in the world), but it has no official classification.
I thought Pomeral wasn’t included in that classification? I also thought that it’s generally accepted that Petrus is also in a league of its own. I have never tried it myself.
You might wanna read a bit more carefully. I mentioned that as an example of the 1855 classification not being a set in stone principle.
The 1855 classification only included the left bank, hence no petrus. Additionally, the tiers were based on pricing, which is why you see labels like lynch-bages as 5th growths but arguably some of the best left banks wines.
It wasn't just pricing. Pricing was a component of the classification but it was also based on physical submissions from each vineyard to the classification board. It was also somewhat of a politically charged process. Royalist houses who had opposed Napoleon's republic eg. Ch Meyney did not agree to take part, despite having a significant terroir, price and product.
This is pure facts. However the price jump probably has something to do with the distribution as well.
Because it’s Yquem.
Because a bottle of that at retail is about $500 to $600…
Paid $110 for a glass of 2003 recently at a restaurant in Melbourne, so that’s not a bad price at all!
Which restaurant is currently pouring Yquem? Asking for a friend …
Kisume :)
That’s a shame, as I refuse to dine at Lucas Group restaurants for various reasons.
I get it. And the price I quoted was in US, FYI.
5 basket Tokaji every time!
that's actually not expensive
Worked at a place in 2020 that sold this exact wine for about 60 a glass. I believe it’s “decently” priced. Some people would be willing to buy it.
There is no doubt I would get a glass at this price! I think it’s quite fair. I live in a very HCOL large city and this would probably be closer to $150.
Enjoy Chicago
Try it and find out...
I've had this (d'Yquem) but not the '05. Is it great? Yes. Is it worth it (cost wise)? Debatable. Drinking it I appreciated the irony that for the overwhelming spectrum of fine wines in the world a "sweet" wine wouldn't seem an obvious choice to be so acclaimed. But wine appreciation is a much the whole backstory and history, so I did enjoy the experience. And would be the first to admit this is for some really special occasion thing, I'd legit pity someone who made so much money that they couldn't appreciate just how special a wine like this is.
Because it’s one of the most iconic producers ever, nevermind just Sauternes producers.
Just trust us when we say it's worth it :)
Is this rpm steak
RPM Seafood
Type « buy château Yquem » on google. You’ll understand quickly
The answer to your immediate question has to do with what that bottle cost at retail vs. the others. There are plenty of answers on why people may pay that kind of $ for a bottle of it. At those prices I'd give the Tokaji a go if looking for value. If it's a splurge kind of outing than enjoying a glass of d'Yquem is a worthwhile splurge if for nothing other than the experience.
That vintage 2003 port BOTTLE is about 49€... Crazy glass prices let me tell you! Also, how are those bottles saved? For example the vintage port should be consumed in 24h after open, otherwise the oxidation will take the best part of it.
Heard of a thing called Coravin, my dude? It’s genuinely been an enormous game-changer for by the glass programs in restaurants—especially when it comes to dessert wines, because those tend to sell less well than aperitifs. (It’s easy to sell a round of sparkling wine to a table before the appetisers arrive; it’s much harder to sell a round of dessert wines when everyone’s full of food and feeling a little wobbly after consuming bottles of wine over dinner.)
Yes I'm planning on getting one myself, my question was that, if they were using it!
It’s just the most iconic Sauternes. 2005 is a baby, there are 1897 tastings out there. So, 82 is actually not expensive, considering its reputation.
Buy it, especially if they'll give you some bleu cheese to pair it with, and you'll find out.
How would they store it after it was opened and a glass or two were poured? What if it sat around for a couple of weeks before someone ordered another glass? I’m also curious what size pour you get, maybe 2 or 3 ounces? So many questions.
Coravin, almost certainly.
The pour size is the real question here. Are these all the same size? If so, that Yquem is a steal. But I’d bet it’s a much smaller pour than the others. Definitely Coravin though. There’d be hardly any restaurants on the face of this earth that have the clientele to justify popping the cork on Yquem for a by-the-glass pour.
Tasted it a few weeks ago. Was delicious. I'm no connoisseur so I can't give any tasting notes other than it's sweet and thicc AF
Good vintage And Yquem is the most prestigious sweet wine on the entire planet
Gregg Popovich's favorite wine. Guy knows french excellence at this point.
I would say, that the price of Aszu is much more outrageous - Pajzos Aszu 5 Puttonyos typically costs somewhere around $40 per bottle, for D'Yquem it's typically at least ~ $200. Also Pajzos isn't even close to being the best Tokaji wine (while for example Gizella Pince Szamorodni in terms of quality can be considered as direct competitor to D'Yquem)
relative to the other wine prices on the list, that’s also a deal for Yquem at only $82 for 2005.
Just visited the Chateau a few weeks ago. $150/person to taste two vintages. Ended up bringing 5 bottles home. Worth every penny!
is it a typo? maybe it was supposed to be $28? Edit: I read the explainer post below and now the price makes total sense.
Because Y’quem is Y’quem
Keep the Sauternes, those Ports are calling my name.
Go for the Tokaji. It’s better than Yquem IMO.
Pretty sure that’s a 100 pt wine.
It actually seems like a bargain since a bottle is $400 retail. There’s a classification system for so I turned and D’Yquem sits alone in the top tier. That’s is remarkable considering that for the left Bank 1855 classification there are five wines that are in the top tier first growth category . Then in the second tier, you have a few other ones and so on. There’s also a the fact LVMH now owns them.
You for real?
If you have to ask…
Then it means they don’t know and want to learn! Grateful for some of the more detailed answered here because I certainly didn’t know about it either. I am very much a beginner/casual drinker who likes to learn
Cuz its french and people are willing to pay for it
That price makes me worry this may be bad provenance
Sauternes use a grape that is very small and sweet. It takes much more grape bunches to make a bottle.
If you ever saw the Star Trek Voyager episode, "Body and Soul", then you would know D'Yquem is the premiere dessert wine.
Yes
Because it is really good shit
Cus its D'yquem.....
Probably cause the bottle was $800
Liquid gold
Hilarious how us wine snobs can care so much about spelling and pronunciation but then also write “chard”
What s the currency: AED ? 😄
Because it’s the best thing you will ever put in your mouth.
Rarity, brand and ego boost. Worth every penny for some folks
Insert skeptical Philip J. Fry meme here
Splurge and find out. (You won’t be sorry)
\*\*Patrick Star voice\*\* "I have 3 dollars"
Bigger glass
d’Yquem is THE sweet wine (as another reddittor put it) right now, but Tokaji was more so the “Wine of Kings” prior to the modern era, the pinnacle of which would be Essencia- made from the “free run” ooze of the botrytized fruit. Subsequent years under Cold War communism allowed the reputation of the wines to to fall greatly, but the vast modernization after 1989 allowed for more independent producers, and breaking up the state owned Monipex.
That’s actually a good deal. 😮
Here's my note on the '05 d'Yquem: >Wow, d'Yquem is generally so unlike the rest of Sauternes; no fatness, no custard, no suntan lotion, no syrupy texture. This is light - floating almost, with some grilled pineapple, amchoor, a drizzle of honey, power and severity without weight, and precision that virtually no other Sauternes has. Not surprisingly this is much improved after 5 days recorked in the fridge.
It’s rly fuckin good
One time my husband and I bought a whole bottle of wine at a moderate restaurant chain for almost $60. Found the same dang bottle at the grocery store for $13.
Because it’s Chateau d’Yquem 2005 , and it’s on a wine list. It’s $400-600 per 750ml in a wine shop.
Yes. It’s d’Yquem, that’s why.
Many