French dessert wine
Few argue that France produces some of the world's best wines. While the climate is perfect, the secret ingredient is the rot on the vine, known as "noble rot" which infects the vine with a mold called "botrytis cinerea." This mold pierces the skin of the grape and is then quickly killed by sunlight and rising temperatures. While sounding very unappealing, according to the BasicWineKnowledg.com, this natural process produces the sweetest and often most expensive dessert wines in the world.
Chateau d'Yquem
According to "Basic Wine Knowledge", the Sauternes district in the Bordeaux region of France produces the best dessert wine in the world. Chateau d'Yquem, a Sauvignon Blanc, is the Sauternes best known, most expensive sweet wine, retailing for approximately $300 for a 375ml bottle, as of March 2010. Described by author Tom Levenson in an article titled "Because it is There" "as simply the best wine of its type we had ever tasted... my first taste of Yquem was one of the few times in my life when the experience exceeded the expectation."
Known to be perfectly sweet and flowery, with a rich, honey flavor and subtle mustiness, Chateau Yquemis also is known for its floral aroma. Perhaps not a wine you would serve at an ordinary event, wine connoisseurs agree, for a special occasion it's worth the extravagance.
Quarts de Chaume
Quarts de Chaume, a sweet, gold to amber colored dessert wine is produced in the village of Chaume, in the Loire Valley of France. Quarts de Chaume is actually quite versatile, and pairs with many food items. It is fairly reasonable for a good French wine at an average of $50 per 375ml bottle, as of March 2010. The leading producers of this wine are Domaine des Baumard, Pierre-Bise and Chateau Bellerive.
At the 2005 Loiree Tasting Extravaganza, various Quarts de Chaume were judged as organic, woody and exotic with citrus fruits, rich and creamy, with a long, lingering finish.
Selection des Grains Nobles
French for "selection of noble harvest", Selection des Grains Nobles is produced in Alsace, in the northwest region of France along the Rhine. This sweet dessert wine is known for its rich, fully bodied flavors. The four "Nobles" variety include Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, Riesling and Muscat.
Stephen Tanzer, editor and publisher of the "International Wine Cellar" describes The Albert Mann Gewurztraminer Furstentum SGN 2000 as "rich and fat, with a lovely touch of sweetness...bright flavors of mandarin oranges and minerals carry through." The average price of a 375ml bottle, as of March 2010, is $50.
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