Château d'Yquem 1985
The most famous of the sweet wines of the world, the castle of Yquem is since 1999 in the hands of the group LVMH directed by the businessman Bernard Arnault. The castle is today played by Pierre Lurton, also at the head of the Cheval Blanc castle in Saint-Émilion. Before him, Alexandre de Lur Saluces wrote, from 1967 to 2004, some of the most beautiful pages in the history of the only premier cru classé supérieur in 1855, in the tradition of his ancestors. Because this wine is perhaps the most regular of Bordelais for a hundred years. Even in small vintages and difficult times, Yquem has held its rank even in its incomparable aging. It owes this state of affairs to a unique terroir, reacting to the development of Botrytis like no other, and to men who have been able to understand and highlight its qualities. If Yquem does not necessarily impress in his youth, he irremediably digs the gap with his neighbors after a few years of care. To taste an old vintage of the castle remains an experience that every amateur of sweet wine must have known in his life.
Vintage 1985: A very cold winter, a very wet spring, a summer of persistent drought (only one rainy day between September 15th and All Saints' day); a meager harvest despite the harvest started on October 5th! And coup de theater in early December, rotten finally settled. Harvest in December, a rarity, and a miraculous Yquem.