x
  • Country ranking ?

    1 350
  • Producer ranking ?

    85
  • Decanting time

    2h
  • When to drink

    now to 2030
  • Food Pairing

    Salads

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The Story

The pleasure derived from tasting Yquem is difficult to describe.

It offers a myriad of well-balanced, complex flavours that generate even more harmonies over time. The impression that remains is reminiscent of a quote from Frédéric Dard "the silence that follows a piece by Mozart, in which the listener remains suffused with the music". This reflects the fact that Château d'Yquem stays on the palate for a remarkable long time, providing a u...

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Wine Information

The year got off to a good start thanks to unbroken fine weather (warm and dry) throughout the growing season. The harvest began very early, on the 9th of September, but botrytis was largely at a standstill due to lack of water. Grapes representing not even 15 barrels of wine were picked in 3 weeks (but weighed in at over 30° potential alcohols). Picking began again in October, but the rest of the crop was irretrievably ruined by 8 days of rai...

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Vintage 1961

1961 - the greatest Bordeaux vintage ever?

I’m writing this during the en primeur campaign and notice that the Bordelais château-owners and négociants have been unusually quiet this year. I have followed this part of the market from a distance for close to 30 years now and have been told about a large number of “vintages of the century”. After the wines have been bottled and sold or the other way round, as the case is in Bordeaux, these cla...

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Average Bottle Price

2023 2015 2010 1995
985€ +21.6% 810€ +44.6% 560€ +166.7% 210€

This data comes from the FINE Auction Index, a composite of average prices for wines sold at commercial auctions in 20 countries. The average prices from each year have been collected since 1990. This chart plots the index value of the average price of the wines.

Latest Pro-tasting notes

15 tasting notes

Tasting note

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Written Notes

The 1961 d’Yquem was much browner with sugar and cola in its nose, Dr. Brown’s celery soda to be precise. Its palate was round and sweet with cola flavors but also a touch medicinal. Tangy and smoky, the ’61 had a hint of sour, although its acid was holding well (92).
  • 92p

The 1961 d’Yquem lies in the shadow of the touted 1962 but it should not be completely dismissed. It leaps from the glass with scents of marmalade and dried quince, a light adhesive scent emerging with time. It is not the most complex d’Yquem on the nose but it is certainly well defined. The palate is medium-bodied and here one can find shortcomings because it feels a little flat and lacks tension, unusual for this esteemed property. There are redeeming orange rind and Seville orange marmalade notes that keep you interested but I cannot help feeling that it might have seen better days. Tasted at the 1961 dinner Chairman Miaow’s in Hong Kong.

  • 90p

Good fill, B level, cork almost soaked, amber colour, beautiful fresh and clean nose, raisins, minerals, apricots, pineapple, slightly oxidized, some orange and lightly floral. Elegant body, nice acidity, a bit hollow, but fresh fruit, dates, a bit simple but a very good wine and better than most reviews. Nice finish. 87

 

  • 87p
Dark amber. It had aromas of crème brulée and grapefruit in the nose, and was marked by acidity on the palate with nice concentration, length and aftertaste. This wine lacked a good portion of sweetness and tasted a bit four-squared. It had its peak several years ago.
  • 86p
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Information

Origin

Sauternes, Bordeaux

Vintage Quality

Excellent

Investment potential

Good

Fake factory

Be Cautious

Glass time

45min
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