This AOC family includes medium sweet and sweet wines, which differ based on their residual sugar content. These wines are extremely elegant, smooth, and have a remarkable bouquet. The magic of Bordeaux sweet wines is the remarkable balance between sugar and acidity, which never becomes cloying.
These wines have made an enormous contribution to establishing and maintaining Bordeaux's reputation, notably with such icons as the crus classés from Sauternes-Barsac, as well as other less well-known appellations that also produce high quality sweet wines.
Medium sweet and sweet wines are made principally from Sémillon and Sauvignon and, to a lesser extent, Muscadelle. Their exceptional sugar content results from the activity of Botrytis cinerea, also known as noble rot. It develops as a result of a specific microclimate which, as of the end of the Summer, combines mild temperatures and morning fog. This noble rot attacks the grape skin, cracks it, thereby allowing the grape to lose its moisture. The grape pulp transforms itself into a golden jam, in which are concentrated sugars, juices and aromas.
The production area of Sweet White Wine stretches along both sides of the Garonne, south of the city of Bordeaux. It includes 12 AOCs which represent 3 % of planted surfaces in Bordeaux.
