TN: 1984 De Bortoli Sauternes [sic] Botrytis Semillon

[Baby Chickpea]

<b>1984 De Bortoli Sauternes [sic] Botrytis Semillon</b>
Now labelled “Noble One”. 750ml bottle. I cracked open one of these last night after reading good reviews from Huon Hooke recently (which he rated one the best in a vertical) and some Aussie forum writers. Cork fully intact and in excellent condition. Deep golden orange, almost bronzed. Beautiful. The nose offers essence of marmalade, honey, apricots, pineapple, tropical sweet esters. The wine tastes huge. Mammoth. Extraordinarily rich. Intoxicatingly rich and sweet – far too much. Almost liqueur like. The concentration is almost cloying. One of the most intense dessert wines I’ve ever tasted. Palate has piqued tones of honey, caramel, apricots, <I>et al.</I> The full plethora of tropical fruits. Finishes with slight acidity. Has a massive mouthfill – the second wind re-attacks after swallowing – long and powerful. But, for me, far too much of a good thing can be deadly! That’s a stylistic preference for me but to be fair the wine is <b>Very Good 17.5 / 20</b>