1990 Coutet Cuvee Madame
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Tasting notes
The 1990 Coutet Cuvée Madame is a vintage that I have never encountered before and my word, this has to be one of the greatest Sauternes ever made. It has an ethereal bouquet with Manuka honey, linseed, melted candle wax and a touch of toffee apple that even after 48 hours of opening is as fresh as a daisy. The palate is very well balanced with stunning harmony, the acidity slicing through those layers of botrytised fruit, effortless and extraordinarily long. This is one of the purest Cuvée Madame releases that I have tasted, surpassing the 1995 and 1997, an absolutely sensational Barsac. Profound. (175gm/L residual sugar, 13.0% alcohol).
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Robert Parker
Neal Martin
More reviews and scores
Tiny quantities are made of Coutet's Cuvee Madame, a spectacularly rich Barsac that, along with Yquem, is the quintessential example of what heights a great sweet wine can achieve. The 1988, 1989 and 1990 vintages are nearly perfect wines. The 1990 is the richest and most powerful, but the 1988's extraordinary perfume is other-worldly. All three wines offer a profound bouquet of smoky, toasty new oak combined with honeyed peaches and apricots, as well as coconuts and a touch of creme brulee. With extraordinarily rich, full-bodied, marvelously extracted personalities, as well as wonderful underlying acidity, these are spectacular wines. As a postscript, many readers may not realize that Coutet's Cuvee Madame is only released in great vintages. It is produced from the oldest vines and most botrysized grapes. The first vintage produced was 1943, followed by 1949, 1950, 1959, 1971, 1975, 1981, 1986, and the three vintages reviewed in this issue.
About the producer
Classified as a First Growth in 1855, this Barsac property has a history stretching back to the 14th century. Today it has 38.5 hectares of vineyard, producing brilliant sweet wines cut by taut acidity. In certain years, it produces Cuvée Madame, pure botrytised Semillon from its oldest vines.