Dessert wines,
like Sauternes and Tokaji, are some of the most delicious and most sought after
wines in the World. I actually resent using the word “dessert” to describe them
as they can also be served with cheese, foie gras, or just enjoyed on their
own. The best examples can age for many years but can also be very expensive
and very difficult to get your hands on. So here I will explain why they are so
expensive and suggest some affordable alternatives for you to try.
Majestic Mould
Some of the
World’s most expensive dessert wines are made courtesy of a fungus called
botrytis. This fungus (also known as "noble rot") affects vineyards
near large rivers or lakes as it relies on the initial moisture of a misty
morning followed by the dry heat of the sun to be able to take hold on the
grapes and dehydrate them, leaving them shrivelled and raisin-like. These are
very specific requirements: in some years there is no botrytis at all, in
others there is too much moisture and you get grey or black rot which destroys
the whole crop. So it's an unpredictable and risky business!
 |
| Botrytised Riesling grapes basking in the afternoon sun |
The botrytis-affected
grapes are picked by hand, pressed and then fermented into wine. The high sugar
levels mean that fermentation quickly produces a wine of high alcohol and as a
result the fermentation process stops naturally leaving plenty of remaining
sugar in the resultant wine. Probably the most famous example of this is Sauternes, which is made in Bordeaux
from a blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle grapes. The best
Sauternes have a beautiful freshness and minerality which balances the high
sugar levels, and goes beautifully with foie gras. If you can't afford
Sauternes then look out for Monbazillac which is made using the same method but
is considerably cheaper.
Other wines
that are made using the same method are…
·
Tokaji:
made in Hungary from the grape Furmint, the best are labelled “Aszu” and the sweetness
level is graded in “puttonyos” from 3 to 7. I recommend you start with the lower and more affordable grades first
(number 7, aka “Aszu Essencia” is very much a wine-to-try-before-you-die…)
·
Beerenauslese
& Trockenbeerenauslese Rieslings: made in Germany (often abbreviated to
BA or TBA on the label), the latter is made solely from raisins and requires
around 100kg to make just one litre of this heavenly nectar. Hence their rarity
and expense! You can find affordable BA wines but, for a cheaper alternative,
look out for “late-harvest” Rieslings from New Zealand.
Ice Ice Baby
You may well
have heard of Ice Wine, aka Eiswein. To make these wines, the
grapes must be picked when they are frozen (often super early in the morning)
and rushed back to the winery to be pressed before they thaw out. Another labour-intensive
and unpredictable method of production then! The frozen water can then be
removed from the grape must, resulting in very high sugar levels. These wines
are most famously from Germany and Canada and I’m afraid that, because of how
difficult it is to produce, there really aren’t any cheaper alternatives so it
may be best to just save this one for a special occasion.
Pass a Straw
This final,
labour-intensive method is where the grapes are picked and then laid out on
straw mats to raisinate before being pressed into wine. Italy widely uses this
method, and the wines can be spotted by the names Passito or Recioto. One
of my favourites is Recioto della Valpolicella which is a sweet red wine made
by drying out the grapes used for Valpolicella. Down in Tuscany, Vin Santo is made using Trebbiano &
Malvasia grapes, and often served with Cantucci biscuits to dunk. Heaven.
 |
| Passito grapes drying out |
Outside
Italy, you will find “Straw Wines” (also
often labelled as “Vin de Paille”)
in such far flung places as Croatia, South Africa and California. They are made
using the same methods and well worth looking out for, although in general
these styles are a touch cheaper than their icey or mouldy counterparts.
FOOD MATCHING TIP: always make sure the sticky wine you serve is
sweeter than the dessert itself. None of
the above dessert wines are actually high enough in sugar or alcohol to stand
up to a chocolate pudding, they are much better with apple tarts (Sauternes),
bread & butter pudding (Tokaji) or Sticky Toffee Pudding (Straw Wine). And
if all else fails, just scoff the pudding and enjoy the sticky wine after.
There are plenty of other sweet wines out there which are made by fortifying the wine to stop fermentation early & retain a high level of residual sugar. Some of these can work brilliantly with chocolate but that is something for another blog post.
Happy
Swigging!
