Mer Soleil Late (half-bottle) 2002

This luscious dessert wine, made from Viognier grapes, is the result of Botrytis cinerea—the organism responsible for some of the world’s most highly regarded dessert wines. The Wagner family’s vineyard site in the Santa Lucia Highlands provides optimal conditions for late-season botrytis. The vineyard’s climate also results in wines with great natural balance because the cool temperatures help maintain excellent acidity in the grapes. This balance is crucial in a dessert wine like this one, with a residual sugar of 17 percent at bottling. The grapes for this wine were hand-picked on December 8 and 9, 2000

An expansive nose of floral aromas, apricots and spice. In the mouth, flavors of ripe apricots and honey. The wine has a mouth-coating, nectar-like texture and a lingering honeyed-fig finish. This is a true dessert wine, with a dense, velvety body and flavors that stay with you long after you’ve put the glass down.