2017 La Semillante de Sigalas Rabaud

100% Sémillon. First vintage 2009. 45-year-old vines on gravelly, south-facing slopes at the top of a 110 m hill. 45 hl/ha. No anti-botrytic spraying, early leaf-stripping then a second round close to harvest. Three phases of harvest – early for freshness and late for richness. Skin contact since 2016. Eight days cold, pre-fermentation stabilisation for fruit and power. Lower pH batches underwent hyperoxidation. Barrel fermentation in 15% new, French oak barrels, with selected yeast used for Chardonnay in Burgundy. Small portion undergoes MLF. Seven months’ maturation in barrel, on lees, with bâtonnage 2 times/week. TA 3.71 g/l, pH 3.38, RS 0.8 g/l. 10,000 bottles made. Tasted blind. Pale lemon. Quite heady, tropical fruit with some lemon rind beneath. Stewed apple. Some background, older-oak nuttiness. Rounded, but attractive ripe lemon, tropical fruit and some mealiness. Big and rich, with a fairly long finish. (TJ)

The 2017 La Sémillante de Sigalas gives pretty lemon drops and peach blossoms scents with hints of lime leaves and mandarin peel. Medium-bodied with a very elegant yet intense palate, it's wonderfully refreshing with a perfumed finish.