Château Suduiraut 2025

Château Suduiraut is a classed growth estate in Sauternes, in the Graves district of Bordeaux, where sweet wine is made from grapes affected by noble rot. The blend is mostly Semillon with Sauvignon Blanc, grown on gravel and sand over clay near the Ciron, a cool tributary whose autumn morning mists settle over the vineyards. Those mists, burnt off by afternoon sun, encourage the fungus Botrytis cinerea, which pierces the grape skins and lets water evaporate so that sugar, acid and flavour concentrate in the shrivelled berries. Pickers go through the rows in successive passes, taking only the botrytised fruit, before fermentation and ageing in barrel, where oak and slow oxygen exchange add structure and a marzipan depth while the wine retains its lively acidity. The colour is bright gold. The nose offers ripe apricot, honey and white flowers with a hint of orange marmalade. The palate is rich and unctuous yet kept fresh and balanced by acidity, finishing long on beeswax and stone fruit. Serve well chilled at around 8 to 10C in a small glass. It is a classic match for blue cheese and fruit tarts.