2022 Lafaurie Peyraguey

Liquid peach, honeyed orange, caramelized pineapple, and spicy notes all emerge from the 2022 Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey Coeur De Terroir, an absolutely massively unctuous, thick, textured Sauternes that, despite all its richness and depth, somehow stays light on its feet, beautifully balanced, and elegant. It's a monster dessert wine that has so much to love. Give bottles just a year or three and enjoy over the following two decades.

I found the richness during En Primeur particularly marked with this estate, and my feeling is confirmed on this retaste - it is luscious and opulent, replete with apricot puree, quince, lemon posset, impressive and textural but a style that lacks the push and pull of acidity and bitterness than makes for a truly balanced Sauternes. Particularly important to serve this chilled.

Produced at very low yields, the 2022 Lafaurie-Peyraguey is a real success. Evoking a deep, complex bouquet of orange blossom, spring flowers, saffron, spices and quince, it's dense and deep with a full-bodied, layered core of fruit and a compact palate perfectly balanced thanks to racy, bright acids that conclude in an endless, polished finish. Massive, demonstrative and well-crafted, this is a concentrated Sauternes that should age with aplomb.