Tasting notes
A concentrated, luscious dessert wine balanced by good acidity. Will accompany foie gras, a wide variety of desserts and soft blue cheeses.
Why we recommend this wine
It ticks the boxes; excellent wine at a very reasonable price; small, family-owned Château.
The wine
Made from 100% hand-harvested Semillon grapes affected by noble rot, fermented in stainless steel to capture the essence of the grapes and matured in oak barrique to add complexity. This is a concentrated, luscious dessert wine showing intense flavours of caramelized fruits, pear, melon and almond, all balanced by good acidity.
The wine estate
After tasting the wine at a show we went to visit the estate in Sauternes (see here). It really is a very small operation. The Guinabert family has owned Château Les Mingets for many generations. It is now run by Pierre Guinabert who is passionate about his vines and is former President of The Sauternes Producers Association, lecturing on the subject both at a national level and at also on the international stage. Located in the village of Bommes, this 7.5 hectare property is made up of 12 plots of land, each with different exposure and varying gravel and sand soils.
Food and wine
Will accompany foie gras, a wide variety of fruits, cake, cream tarts, crème brûlée and soft blue cheeses. Also see our guide to pairing food and wine here.
Did you know?
Harvesting grapes as late as possible makes them naturally sweet but to get really sweet wines the grapes need a helping hand to remove more moisture from the grapes. Most times this is achieved by drying the grapes, spreading them on straw in the sun. But sometimes, as in Sauternes, the grapes get affected by ‘noble rot’ which also removes moisture from the grapes.