Winemaker Notes
Delicacy is the key word for this 2023 vintage. The nose is complex, revealing notes of pineapple, peach, pear and a delicate touch of vanilla. The 15% Semillon in the blend gives this wine a round, harmonious and particularly expressive mouthfeel. Les Arums 2023 will surprise you with its freshness and balance.
Blend: 73% Sauvignon Blanc, 12% Sauvignon Gris, 15% Sémillon
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Crisp green apple, hints of citrus and white stone fruit and some pear and clementine notes. Smells clean and fresh. Fresh and lively, bright and round. Lemon leanness with some peachy fleshiness and a hint of both honey and wet stone minerality. A lovely dash of sweetness nicely balances and counters the acidity with some soft spiced and bitter grapefruit edges giving the frame. Well balanced, really easy to drink yet on the refreshing side of the spectrum. A great white in 2023. Ageing seven months in oak barrels, 40% new oak. 3.2pH.
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James Suckling
An excellent Bordeaux blanc that shows fine toast, whipped cream, elegant white fruit and limes on the nose. Savory and delicious on the palate, with a medium body and a creamy, intense finish that goes on for quite a while. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
Bright and pure, this version glistens with fleur de sel, jicama and white peach notes that linger prettily on the unadorned fin- ish. Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Sauvignon Gris.
Sometimes light and crisp, other times rich and creamy, Bordeaux White Blends typically consist of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Often, a small amount of Muscadelle or Sauvignon Gris is included for added intrigue. Popularized in Bordeaux, the blend is often mimicked throughout the New World. Somm Secret—Sauternes and Barsac are usually reserved for dessert, but they can be served before, during or after a meal. Try these sweet wines as an aperitif with jamón ibérico, oysters with a spicy mignonette or during dinner alongside hearty Alsatian sausage.
One of the most important wine regions of the world, Bordeaux is a powerhouse producer of wines of all colors, sweetness levels, and price points. Separated from the Atlantic Ocean by a coastal pine forest, this relatively flat region has a mild maritime climate, marked by cool wet winters and warm summers. Annual weather differences create significant vintage variations, making Bordeaux an exciting French wine region to follow.
The Gironde estuary, a defining feature of Bordeaux, separates most of the region into the Left Bank and the Right Bank. Farther inland, where the Gironde splits into the Garonne and Dordogne Rivers, the bucolic, rolling hills of the area in between, called Entre-Deux-Mers, is a source of great quality, approachable reds and whites.
The Left Bank, dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, contains the Médoc, Graves, and Sauternes, as well as the region’s most famous chateaux. Merlot is important here as the perfect blending grape for Cabernet Sauvignon adding plush fruit and softening Cabernet's sometimes hefty tannins. Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec may also be used in the Left Bank Bordeaux wine blends.
Merlot is the principal Bordeaux wine variety of the Right Bank; Cabernet Franc adds structure and complexity to Merlot, creating wines that are concentrated, supple, and more imminently ready for drinking, compared with their Left Bank counterparts. Key appellations of the Right Bank include St. Emilion and Pomerol.
Dry and sweet Bordeaux white wines are produced throughout the region from Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, and sometimes Muscadelle or Sauvignon Gris. Some of the finest dry whites can be found in the Graves sub-appellation of Pessac-Léognan, while Sauternes is undisputedly the gold standard for sweet wines. Small amounts of rosé and sparkling Bordeaux wines are made in the region as well.