2008 Rieussec: 'Sleek and sensuous' Sauternes to drink or keep

*Yup, it's white, and sweet, but only £20 a bottle by the case before tax (£26.46 inc UK duty & VAT)

'Sauternes generally struggles to rise in price... Rieussec is no exception... It is often linked with Lafite at release and unceremoniously offloaded on to the secondary market' - Liv-ex blog, 18 June 2014

Back in the heady days of the Lafite boom, Domaines Barons de Rothschild decided the best way to deal with the sticky issue of their venerable Rieussec was to tie runaway sales of their fashionable Pauillac to those of their unloved Sauternes. This shifted the stock onto merchants who, faced with several years' inventory, then embarked on fierce discounting, funded by margin from the extra Lafite. Inevitably, this had a devastating effect on the wider market price - not just of Rieussec, but Sauternes generally, where many producers were already struggling to break even.

A couple of years on, prices are recovering: Liv-ex reported in the blog post above that Rieussec was the fourth best performer in the Liv-ex Bordeaux 500 in the year to date. But there are still bargains to be had, and so we are delighted to have scooped up a parcel of the 2008 at little more than half the release price of over five years ago. Stuck between the lauded 2007 and 2009 vintages, 2008 was a difficult growing season, but it made for one of the most versatile of wines. With a lot more Sauvignon than normal in the blend, it's the perfect partner for terrine, shellfish or cheese. It isn't rich and thick but balanced and fresh - for drinking rather than sipping. On its plateau of maturity now, it will last for another decade. /AR

'Tasted single blind against its peers. The Chateau Rieussec 2008 should become an excellent Sauternes for the vintage. It has a floral bouquet with peach, tinned apricot and a touch of marmalade, all with fine delineation, and touches of lemon curd developing with aeration. The palate is mellifluous on the entry, with great depth and a luscious, vanillary note with hints of orange peel, marmalade and quince towards the long finish. Excellent. Tasted January 2012. 93 points.' - Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, February 2012

'A sleek, sensuous Rieussec. 91-93 points.' - Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, April 2009

Offered subject to remaining unsold; available end of October 2014