They can quickly expand a dining palate by bringing a broad spectrum of styles, price points, and food pairing options to the table

Sauternes and Sweet Bordeaux Wine – Spruce Eats

This month our French #Winophiles group of wine and food bloggers are collaborating with Sweet Bordeaux US, a group of wineries from a sub-region of Bordeaux that produce a variety of sweet wines. We explored food pairings beyond the last course these delicious wines.

This was not my first experience with the Sweet Bordeaux wines. My initial exposure to the wine was courtesy of the Snooth Media’s Go Golden Bordeaux campaign a couple of years ago. It was a such a great experience I was inspired to write “It’s Time To Go Beyond The Last Course with Sweet Bordeaux Wines“

Disclosure: These wines were provided to me as media samples. I received no compensation for this post, and all opinions presented are my own.

The Sweet Bordeaux wine region is situated south of the city of Bordeaux. There, crafted by ancient forces, a serendipitous combination of soils and cool morning fog and warm, dry afternoons along the banks of the Garonne River, the beneficial fungus Botrytis (a.k.a.”noble rot”) grows on Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle grapes bunches. Noble rot is an alchemy that happens inside each berry concentrating, and dramatically increasing the flavors, sugars and acids in the grapes.

The result? Sweet Bordeaux!

While the most famous of wines are intensely sweet, the wines are crafted in a variety of styles depending on the combination of overripe grapes and botrytized grapes uses to make the wines. Wines classified as “Moelleux” are off-dry or medium sweet. Wines classified as “Liquoreux” are intensely sweet.

The Wines and Pairings

I sampled four wines – two Vin Moelleux and two Vin Liquoreux and paired them with Southern fare.

2019 Château la Hargue Moelleux

When I first received these samples, the first dish that came to mind was Shrimp Étouffée, a classic Creole stew is made with shrimp, the Holy Trinity of onion, celery, and green pepper, and a simple roux. Étouffée is a French word that means “smothered” or “suffocated.”  It’s been years since I’ve made it, and so I decided to give it a try. This wine was a wonderful partner for my dish!

Tasting note: Very pale gold color with passion fruit, lime zest, golden apple, apricot aromas with a hint of yellow flowers.On the palate it’s medium-bodied and off-dry with bright acidity. It shows passion fruit, ripe peach, apricot, golden apple, and lime curd flavors with a medium finish. Blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Muscadelle and Sauvignon Gris planted on clay and limestone soils in Entre-Deux-Mers. Vin Moelleux  11% abv|SRP ~ $18 We particularly enjoyed this wine as an aperitif. I think it would be hit a party (remember those) or until then, an outdoor gather of your pod!

2018 Château Tanesse Moelleux

Any Chicken and Waffle fans here? It’s typically brunch item for me, but inspired by my friend Michelle Williams of Rockin Red Blog, we paired this wine with take-out Chicken and Waffle. Whoa! She was right, it’s a great pairing. The sweetness of the wines is a wonderful counterpoint to the spiciness of the fried chicken and the wine’s acidity cuts through the buttery, maple-y goodness of the waffle!

Tasting note: Pale gold color with ripe stone and tropical fruit aromas with hints of lemon zest and white flowers. On the palate it’s medium-bodied, and off-dry with lively acidity and a supple texture. It shows with ripe peach, apricot, pineapple, lychee, and honey flavors with a hint of spice. Medium finish. Blend of 85% Muscadelle and 15% Sauvignon Blanc grown on silty and clay and gravelly slopes. Vin Moelleux. 12.5% abv|SRP – $16

2014 Château du Cros

This wine was wonderful paired with a classic Southern dessert Sweet Potato Pies.

Tasting note: Deep gold color with aromatic ripe peach, apricot, guava, mandarin orange marmalade aromas and mushroom aromas. On the palate it’s full-bodied with vibrant acidity and ripe yellow peach, apricot, mandarin orange marmalade, and guava flavors beautifully accented with appealing savory and mineral notes with a long clean finish. Blend of 90% Sémillon; 5% Sauvignon Blanc; and 5% Muscadelle grown in chalky clay with limestone subsoil. Vin liquoreux. 13% abv| SRP – $30|500ml. Fantastic value here!

While researching the versatility of Sweet Bordeaux wines, I came across a few recommendations for using the wines in cocktails. Since I had a bottle of Amara Amaro d’Arancia Rossa (my favorite Amaro), I decided to create a cocktail. Inspired by the Aperol Spritz, I mixed(roughly) 2oz of the Chateau du Cros Loupiac, 1 oz of the Amara, filled a glass with ice and topped it with Fever-Tree Tonic water. My wife and I both loved it. There’s a nice interplay between the sweetness of the Louipiac and the herbal slightly bitter notes in the Amaro and the tonic water lightens it up and adds to its freshness. I call it Amareaux and Tonic!

2016 Château La Rame Sainte Croix du Mont

We paired this wine another classic Southern dessert – Peach Cobbler. Another fabulous pairing!

Tasting note: Brilliant medium-gold color with exuberant ripe peach, apricot, mandarin orange marmalade. On the palate, it’s full-bodied with a supple texture and vibrant acidity with ripe peach, apricot, honey, and citrus jam flavors and a long finish. Blend of 95% Sémillon, 5% Sauvignon Blanc from 50 y.o. vines grown on clay-limestone soil with fossilized oysters subsoil. Vin liquoreux. 13% abv|SRP – $34

The wines and the pairings were a hit in our house! The wines of Sweet Bordeaux have definitely inspired me to try more savory pairings, serve the wines as aperitifs and maybe even a cocktail or three!

For more information, including lot of pairing ideas and recipes check the Sweet Bordeaux website.

If you’re looking for me amazing pairing ideas for Sweet Bordeaux wines, be sure to check out what my fellow #Winophiles discovered during their exploration of these wines! And if you’re up early enough please join our Twitter chat on Saturday 11/21 at 8a PT/11a ET. Just follow the #Winophiles hashtag.

• Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla: “Surprise! Pairing Spicy and Savory Dishes with Sweet Bordeaux”
• Terri at Our Good Life: “Spicy Hot Tacos and Sweet Bordeaux”
• Martin at ENOFYLZ: “Pairing Golden Bordeaux with Southern Fare”
• Lauren at The Swirling Dervish: “Golden Bordeaux Meets Savory Pumpkin and Smoked Bacon Tart: a Delicious Thanksgiving Twist!”
• David at Cooking Chat: “Pairings for Sweet Bordeaux Wine”
• Katrina at The Corkscrew Concierge: “Golden Bordeaux Delights in Louisiana’s Cajun and Creole Cuisine”
• Jane at Always Ravenous: “Golden Sweet Bordeaux Wines: Tasting and Pairings”
• Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm: “Hot Chocolate and Halva Pudding paired with Lion De Tanesse L’Amour”
• Jeff at foodwineclick: “Sweet Bordeaux Meets the Smoke”
• Jill at L’OCCASION: “Sweet Bordeaux Wines Aren’t Just for Dessert”
• Lynn at Savor the Harvest: “Sweet Bordeaux Wines Get Savory Pairings”
• Rupal at Syrah Queen: “Sweet Bordeaux Is A Sweet Delight – Savor These Perfect Food Pairings”
• Robin at Crushed Grape Chronicles: “Sweet Bordeaux Wines and pairings from opposite sides of the globe”
• Pinny at Chinese Food & Wine Pairings: “Sweet Bordeaux Paired with Asian Carbs – Chinese Sticky Rice and Korean Japchae”
• Susannah at avvinare: “Delightful Sweet Wines from Bordeaux”
• Nicole at Somm’s Table: “Château Loupiac Gaudiet with Cinnamon Apple Crème Brûlée”
• Gwendolyn at wine predator: “Successful Pairings of Salty and Savory with Sweet Semi-Dry Bordeaux”
• Jennifer at Vino Travels: “A Look into the Sweeter Side of Bordeaux Wines”
• Linda at My Full Wine Glass: “Appetizer, entrées and yes, dessert please, with sweet Bordeaux”
• Payal at Keep the Peas: “Four Sweet Bordeaux Wines With Four Courses”

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