Chateau Doisy Däene 2ème GCC 2005

Chateau Doisy Däene 2ème GCC 2005 is one of those special wines that Bordeaux make so well, Sauternes, a sweetie which has been 'infected or affected' by Botrytis Cinera a 'good fungus'. The grapes are Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc, and they have been harvested late in several 'tries' to make sure that only the best/infected grapes are used, so increasing the concentration within the wine!
The colour is deep gold with slow fat legs! On the nose - my first note is 'yummy'! honeyed, floral, tropical fruits incl mango and pineapple and there is a touch of gingery spice.
On the mouth - lusciously sweet, silky mouth texture and masses of concentrated tropical fruits - pineapple, mango, lychee, honeyed and rich with a savoury and pithy are also words that fit in with its character. The length - long and honeyed with those tropical fruits through to the end!
This is a classified growth - so quality was expected, but at the price of £17+ from Waitrose , seems a snip to me!
Score : 95

Botrytis Cinerea is a fungus that can infect grapes in the correct conditions, good rot is called Noble rot - the desired one ( the bad one - grey rot results in wiping out the harvest), there are areas in the world that this can happen naturally and one of these is the area around Sauternes and Barsac in Bordeaux left bank.The aszu wines of Tokaji wines are also produced having been affected by Botrytis Cinerea. It needs a temperate climate and ideally early morning mists ( off cool water) and sun later in the day so the grapes are kept dry in those autumn afternoons. Not all grapes will be affected, and some may take longer to mature which is why several pickings - called Tries- are needed to get all the grapes at thier ideal condition.
The fungus affects the skins and feeds off sugars in the grape itself, but also uses about 50% of its water contained in the grape, so overall the grapes sugar concentration increases! Additionally acids are also consumed ( 5/6ths of the Tartaric acid in the grape is consumed). By products that are produced include glycerine ( the chemical which makes the wine feel viscous), acetic acidand a selection of enzymes. Phenolics of from the skins are also consumed so reducing the tannic structure.
Due to the reduction in water content of the grape the juice produced from Noble Rot infected grapes is low - often in the range of 15 hl/ha.