Yquem: Now Just $130

If you asked wine lovers the world over to name the one wine that exceeds all others of its type by the greatest margin, surely all would name Chateau d’Yquem.

The sweet white wine of the Sauternes district in Bordeaux is considered best of all wines of the region, and it leads the second grouping of great Sauternes by such a wide gulf that as far back as 140 years ago, when the Bordeaux region was classified, not a single other wine was listed alongside it; it is the only wine listed as Grand Premier Cru.

Today, a good vintage of Yquem (as it’s called by the collector set) sells for $200 a bottle on a shelf, $250 or more at restaurants. (Almost no one discounts this wine, but a few wine shops offer 1988 Yquem at $175; half bottles are $85 or so.)

Is Yquem worth it? Oz Clarke, the irreverent Brit who is rarely so enthusiastic about a wine, virtually rhapsodized when he described Yquem in the latest edition (1993) of his Encyclopedia of Wine:

” . . . a frantically expensive wine which is nonetheless in constant demand because, for sheer richness, for exotic flavours of vanilla, pineapple, melons, peaches and coconut, enveloped in a caramel richness so viscous and lush your mouth feels coated with succulence for an eternity after swallowing the wine . . . for all that, and for the ability to age a decade, a generation, a century even, when the wine will be deep, dark brown . . . and will taste of orange chocolate, butterscotch, barley sugar and caramel . . . no wine in the world can touch Chateau d’Yquem.”

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All true--except for the demand part. At least in California. As great a wine as Yquem is, the price has been a barrier, especially in an economy not yet recovering fast enough to sell caseloads of this wine. Rumors persist that quantities of the excellent 1988 Yquem are backlogged in warehouses and that sales are slower than anticipated.

So slow, in fact, that merchants in the Los Angeles area were surprised recently to be told that if they wanted any of the reportedly great 1989 Yquem (which will be released this summer), they had to buy two cases of the 1988 vintage. (Not that there’s anything wrong with the ‘88; in fact, it comes from a year ranked among the best ever in Sauternes.)

This may prove to be a barrier to some merchants, since for three cases of this wine they’ll have to ante up more than $5,000, with no guarantee they’ll sell the wine very quickly.

Of course, the Comte Alexander de Lur-Saluces, proprietor of Yquem, could well argue that he can’t sell the wine until nearly five years after the grapes are harvested, and even then he’d be making only 42 cases out of acres of vines--about a tenth of what a standard table wine would produce from an acre. This works out to about one glass of wine per vine.

Moreover, the painstaking method used to produce this liquid is costly. Add to the equation the fact that it is not even possible to make Yquem every year. A few months back, Lur-Saluces announced that the 1992 harvest in Sauternes was so poor that no Yquem would be made at all, joining 1964, 1972 and 1974 as bypassed vintages.

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The loss of four vintages in 30 may not seem like much, but consider that even in some years when Yquem is made, production is reduced to make the wine good. In 1978, for instance, only 15% of a normal crop could be used.

In part, production of Yquem is so small to make sure it is very good, which is the secret to any great wine. But in the case of Yquem, nature limits what may be done to make great wine, and there is a very fine line between greatness and disaster since the wine is so dependent on a mold developing in the vineyard and infecting the grapes.

Not any mold will do, however. It must be the so-called “noble mold,” Botrytis cinerea , which pokes tiny holes in the grape skins and allows moisture to evaporate slowly, concentrating the sugars in the juice.

In years when there isn’t enough concentration, some producers resort to a new, controversial method of winemaking for Sauternes and other sweet wines called cryo-extraction. In this technique, the grape juice is chilled to near freezing, until ice crystals form. The pressing eliminates the ice, theoretically concentrating the resulting wine.

Lur-Saluces admits he tried the technique in 1986 and 1987, but he didn’t like the result, so none of the cryo-extraction wine was ever bottled.

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Harvesting is also done to maximize the proportion of mold-affected grapes. Instead of simply waiting until the vineyard is ripe, pickers go through the vineyard any number of times, as many as 12 over a 60-day period, picking only the perfectly moldy clusters. And the wine remains in the barrel for some 3 1/2 years, nearly twice as long as hearty red wine, gaining complexity as it goes.

“Sauternes, as a category, is a slow-moving wine,” says one Westside wine merchant. “Sales rise a few percent every year, but you don’t have many people buying by the case. They buy a bottle or three.”

For those who are eager to try Yquem once in their lives, now is as good a time as any. The 1987 vintage, which some considered to be rather poor in Sauternes, still produced what I consider an absolutely smashing, spectacular Yquem. I love the fresh fruit and balance, and the great acidity to offset the high sugar.

The 1988 is sweeter, but the 1987 is more approachable. It may be found at $130 or so per bottle, a relative bargain.

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Lur-Saluces was in Southern California last week and he previewed the as-yet unreleased 1989 Yquem.

The wine shows wonderful floral notes, but is very difficult to judge right now because it lacks the bottle bouquet one would expect from a $200 wine. Lur-Saluces says the 1989 vintage had near-perfect weather conditions, and the wine is developing nicely.

Still, I feel the 1987 is the sleeper Yquem to look for, a “bargain,” if one can use that word about Yquem.

A few stores still carry some older vintages of Yquem at prices that make it possible to consider springing for one. And since half-bottles are far easier to buy and use (they contain just 12 1/2 ounces each), they will be well below $100.

A full bottle could well serve two dozen people, with each getting an ounce. The aroma and taste are so incredible you don’t need much more than that to appreciate it. But if you’re a real wine lover, you may realize that a full bottle of Yquem is barely enough for a couple.

Such is the seductiveness of this most remarkable wine.

Wine of the Week

1993 Queen Adelaide Chardonnay ($7)-- Penfolds, Australia’s largest winery group, makes wine under a number of brands, all of them good values. This wine, a new addition to Penfolds’ import list, is made by Seppelts and is the largest selling Chardonnay in Australia.

The fruit aroma is like melons and pears, with lime and other citrus elements as an intriguing addition. There is no oak aging to muck up the bright, crisp fruit, and the aftertaste is so lush and tasty it may be served as an aperitif. Also, it goes well with lightly seasoned seafood dishes. (There is a tiny trace of residual sugar here, but even the most expert tasters won’t be able to tell.) A bargain at the above price, but it may be found at some discounters at less than $6.