Winemaker Notes
Blend: 95% Sémillon, 5% Sauvignon Blanc
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A heavenly Sauternes that shows the richness and opulence of the vintage, the 2015 Château Sigalas Rabaud offers up a beautiful bouquet of caramelized citrus, honeyed flowers, and crème caramel. This is followed by a full-bodied, deep, hedonistic white that stays beautifully balanced and pure, with nicely integrated acidity. You can safely open a bottle anytime over the coming 15-20 years or more.
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Decanter
Minty nuances enliven fresh apple, citrus and mineral aromas and flavours. Has Sigalas-Rabaud’s tell-tale long, mineral delicate mouthfeel. A smashing wine, ideal for those who prefer the lighter side of Sauternes.
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James Suckling
A lush, toasty wine with a lot of honey and caramel, this is a full-throttle, full-bodied Sauternes that lacks some subtlety but has plenty to offer. With more freshness this would have rated more highly. Drink or hold.
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Wine Spectator
Juicy and bright, with jasmine and acacia notes framing a core of yellow apple, peach and nectarine flavors. A pretty green tea hint adds vigor to the finish. This is sneaky good. Best from 2020 through 2037.
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Vinous
The 2015 Sigalas Rabaud has a more primal bouquet with wild honey, peach skin, lanolin and quince aromas that gain intensity in the glass. The palate is well balanced with a lightly spiced opening. It's a little petrolly in style and just misses some freshness on the toffee-tinged finish.
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.
Sweet and unctuous but delightfully charming, the finest Sauternes typically express flavors of exotic dried tropical fruit, candied apricot, dried citrus peel, honey or ginger and a zesty beam of acidity.
Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle are the grapes of Sauternes. But Sémillon's susceptibility to the requisite noble rot makes it the main variety and contributor to what makes Sauternes so unique. As a result, most Sauternes estates are planted to about 80% Sémillon. Sauvignon is prized for its balancing acidity and Muscadelle adds aromatic complexity to the blend with Sémillon.
Botrytis cinerea or “noble rot” is a fungus that grows on grapes only in specific conditions and its onset is crucial to the development of the most stunning of sweet wines.
In the fall, evening mists develop along the Garonne River, and settle into the small Sauternes district, creeping into the vineyards and sitting low until late morning. The next day, the sun has a chance to burn the moisture away, drying the grapes and concentrating their sugars and phenolic qualities. What distinguishes a fine Sauternes from a normal one is the producer’s willingness to wait and tend to the delicate botrytis-infected grapes through the end of the season.