In case fans of Chateau d’Yquem are wondering when the new vintage – which got excellent reviews by the way – is being released the answer is not at the moment. Here is what Pierre Lurton has announced:
“As you may have noticed during the Primeur tasting week, vintage 2011 is very promising for Sauternes wines and particularly for Château d’Yquem. It is so promising that many wine professionals compared it straight away to vintage 2001.
However, our forecasts for this exceptional vintage are not matching the complex background of the primeur 2011 campaign. As Chateau d’Yquem is a timeless wine, we decided it would be wiser to postpone the release of our wine to a more favorable period.”
Yquem 2011 is certainly a candidate for wine of the vintage – with some of the highest scores awarded this year. Neal Martin:96-98. Jancis Robinson:18. Wine Spectator:96-99. James Suckling: 97-98. Mathew Jukes:19.
And here is Neal Martin’s note: “The 2011 has a clear silvery gold hue, perhaps not quite as deep as I recall the 2010 last year. The bouquet is very fragrant and well-defined, with scents of wild honey, honeysuckle and a touch of vanilla. It is a refined, sedate and beautifully focused bouquet that does not need to show off. The palate displays superb weight in the mouth, even though at first it seems almost understated. Yet there is clearly a high level of spicy, botrytized fruit with notes of honey, orange zest and a touch of mandarin. There is no explosion on the finish; the 2011 is rather a lesson in control, complexity and nuance. It is utterly seductive. Drink 2016-2040.”
So we wait patiently to see when Yquem 2011 will be released…