Château Sigalas Rabaud Sauternes 2012 - 1er Cru Classé (37,5cl)

Bettane & Desseauve

About the wine:

One of the sector's most successful wines in this very difficult year, with a freshness that is nonetheless rich in liqueur and no deviation towards iodine or mushroom. This terroir drains magnificently. Drink before 2032.

About the domain :

A direct neighbor of Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Sigalas-Rabaud is a small vineyard of 14 hectares in a single block (the smallest classified growth in Sauternes), ideally exposed, capable of producing a very syrupy wine of transcendent finesse. Due to its early age, grape rot develops in a particularly noble way, as the great vintages of the last twenty years have shown. Laure Compeyrot de Lambert is guiding the vineyard towards a more respectful viticulture and is producing dry wines with character.

Decanter

About the wine:

Intense sweetness (131 gm/l residual sugar) with beautiful balance and precision. This wine doesn't have the density of the best vintages, but it has balance, harmony and freshness in a difficult vintage. Eric Boissenot is the consultant for this property. 2019 - 2027

Guide Hachette des vins

About the domain :

Established in the 17th century by a family of magistrates at the Bordeaux parliament, Ch. Rabaud was acquired by Henri Sigalas and became Sigalas-Rabaud in 1863. In 1903, his son Pierre sold 30 ha to the Promis family, keeping only "the jewel of the terroir", i.e. the present 14 ha planted on a gravelly hilltop on clay. The history of the estate was then eventful (leasing, regroupings, divisions), until the family lands were taken over in 1951 by Marie-Antoinette de Lambert des Granges, née Sigalas, whose granddaughter, Laure de Lambert Compeyrot, now manages the estate.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the domain :

The de Lambert family exploits this magnificent, homogeneous terroir, which provides ideal conditions for the development of noble rot. The wine's style is unrivalled: while it matches the Haut-Sauternais premiers crus in richness of liqueur and power, with a bouquet of the same nature, it reveals a more assertive immediate finesse, which only increases tenfold with ageing. In the final analysis, these are small miracles that a core of loyal connoisseurs place in the firmament of Sauternes. Laure de Lambert-Compeyrot took over the management of Sigalas Rabaud in 2013 and is energetically developing the production of dry whites (La Sémillante de Sigalas and La Demoiselle). She is also fighting for recognition of a new dry Sauternes appellation.

Wine Spectator

About the wine:

This wine presents notes of toasted coconut, warm brioche, pear and peach cream. It has good length, with a note of candied lemon peel adding fullness to the finish. A fine effort for the vintage.

Jancis Robinson

Vinous A. Galloni

About the wine:

Sigalas Rabaud 2012 has a lovely, very pure bouquet, with scents of white peach, quince and saffron. The palate is well balanced with a syrupy attack, good weight, density and fine acidity with much more botrytis towards the finish than the Château de Malle 2012. It's not a long-ageing wine, but it's definitely worth the detour. Tasted blind at the Southwold Ten-Year On tasting.

Le Figaro vins

About the wine:

Sigalas is an honestly constructed wine with a lot of elegance, without the usual power, it is half-bodied, but nicely balanced.