Sauternes is a tiny appellation, only about 2% of the Bordeaux vineyards, located 20 kilometres southeast of Bordeaux. It is difficult to understand with any certainty, due to the lack of written documents, what originally motivated winegrowers to let their grades "rot" on the vine to produce a different kind of wine. Apparently, late harvest wines already existed in the 16th and 17th centuries. This sort of wine became widespread in Sauternes in the 18th and 19th centuries due to the interest shown by connoisseurs such as Thomas Jefferson and Grand Duke Constantine, who induced winegrowers read more...to wort their grapes in order to single out those most affected by "noble rot".

Sauternes is different from other sweet wines for two reasons. First of all, Sauternes has a unique interplay of soil, topography, and microclimate which promotes the regular growth of Botrytis cinerea perhaps more than anywhere else. Second, the vineyards are harvested in several "waves" in order to pick only the most botrytised grapes each time. The wine starts out quite assertively on the palate with mineral flavours and a rich, complex flavour profile. Perfectly balanced, this wine's incredible complexity will become more accessible in a few more years' time.