Château Sigalas Rabaud 2008 - 1er Cru Classé de Sauternes

Bettane & Desseauve

About the wine:

Beautiful notes of apricot on the nose, elegant, pure, and fresh; on the palate, it feels more refined and more polished than last year’s. A successful 2008.

About the estate:

Located right next to Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Sigalas-Rabaud is a small, 14-hectare vineyard in a single block (the smallest classified growth in Sauternes), ideally situated and capable of producing a very sweet wine of transcendent finesse. Due to its early ripening, the grapes develop noble rot in a particularly refined manner, as evidenced by the great vintages of the past twenty years. Laure Compeyrot de Lambert is steering the estate toward more sustainable viticulture and producing dry wines with character.

Guide Hachette des vins

About the wine:

A vast, sloping plot surrounding a beautiful 18th-century building, this vineyard benefits from both good sun exposure and excellent drainage. This was a valuable asset in 2008, a year marked by difficult weather conditions: five rounds of sorting were required for this vintage. The result speaks for itself: a wine that is immediately seductive, with a complex bouquet that blends the sweetness of candied fruit (apricot), honey, and white flowers with the freshness of citrus (grapefruit). Rich, full-bodied, velvety, and elegant, the palate lingers on the finish with a superb roasted note.

About the estate:

Founded in the 17th century by a family of magistrates at the Parliament of Bordeaux, Château Rabaud was acquired by Henri Sigalas and became Sigalas-Rabaud in 1863. In 1903, his son Pierre sold 30 hectares to the Promis family, retaining only “the jewel of the terroir”—the current 14 hectares, planted on a gravelly hilltop over clay. The estate’s history was subsequently turbulent (leasing, mergers, divisions), until the family lands were reclaimed in 1951 by Marie-Antoinette de Lambert des Granges, née Sigalas, whose granddaughter, Laure de Lambert Compeyrot, now manages the estate.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About the wine:

Made from 95% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon Blanc, the 2008 Sigalas Rabaud has a pale lemon-gold color and a nose of warm pineapple, guava, and peach jam with hints of honeycomb and toast. Elegant on the palate with a lively backbone, it drinks beautifully now, with complex earthy notes coming through on the long finish.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the wine:

This lovely Sauternes is already very open and a delight to drink right now. Highly expressive, this vintage from Sigalas Rabaud offers a delicious palate, with seductive fruitiness and a refined, elegant body.

About the estate:

The Lambert family cultivates this magnificent, homogeneous terroir, which provides ideal conditions for the development of noble rot. The wine’s style is unparalleled: while it rivals the Haut-Sauternais premiers crus in terms of richness and power, with a similar bouquet, it reveals a more pronounced, immediate finesse that only intensifies with age. Ultimately, these are small miracles that a core group of loyal connoisseurs places at the pinnacle of Sauternes. Laure de Lambert-Compeyrot took over the management of Sigalas Rabaud in 2013 and is energetically developing the production of dry whites (La Sémillante de Sigalas and La Demoiselle). She is also fighting for the recognition of a new dry Sauternes appellation.

Wine Spectator

Jancis Robinson

James Suckling

About the wine:

It displays a beautiful intensity on the palate for this vintage, with notes of honey, dried lemon, and apricot tart. Medium-bodied to full-bodied, off-dry, with a dense, fresh finish. A slightly rich mouthfeel. Why wait?

Le Figaro vins

About the wine:

Although still somewhat reserved, the wine is exceptionally elegant, without a hint of heaviness, offering good length and great finesse that complements the excellent roast.