By Chateau d'Yquem
2014

Weather
A year with very marked seasons: a warm spring, a cold summer, and a very hot autumn. The average temperature was almost constant from June to October. In late August, the frequent rain finally lifted and summer arrived, with the 4th highest average temperatures in September and October since 1896.

Harvest
In 2014, the three weather sequences during the harvest were ideal for noble rot: light rain to induce Botrytis growth, followed by two or three weeks of stable, hot, dry weather, promoting rapid concentration of the sugars by evaporation. The picking waves simply followed these three periods of Botrytis development. In this way, the 22 mm rainfall of 25 through 28 August was followed by 19 dry days, leading to a very early first wave of picking, from 5 to 17 September, bringing in 1/4 of the harvest with unusually high acidity. Another rainfall episode triggered further Botrytis development, followed by three hot, dry weeks before a second wave of picking from 25 September to 8 October, once again representing 1/4 of the harvest, with superb concentration and lively acidity. The 3rd period of rain was a little longer, from 8 to 16 October, but was once again followed by 16 days of hot, dry weather. The 3rd and 4th waves of picking, between 20 and 30 October, rounded out the aromatic palate and texture of the vintage, with the full-bodied richness of the late-ripening terroirs.

Summary
The long harvest, over a nine week period, captured all the diversity of a growing season where flowering and veraison were also spread out. This year, the early start specific to Yquem, with 25% of the grapes harvested before 15 September, provided unusually fine acidity. This gives an attractive edge to a blend which reflects the full complexity of this vintage, combining a modern approach with freshness and concentration, in the same vein as 2011.
[Information provided by Beyerman Wines]

CHATEAU D'YQUEM Sauternes 2014
Score: 98
Region: France / Bordeaux / Sauternes
Issue: Mar 31, 2017
Designation: Collectible
A stunner, sporting tropical mango and papaya notes that glide along beautifully, while heather honey, pineapple chutney and toasted coconut flavors fill in through the finish. Delivers an amazing mouthfeel that is both creamy and intense, with a pretty inner floral brightness that contrasts with the fruit. Best from 2020 through 2045. — JM

CHATEAU D'YQUEM SAUTERNES 2014
Monday, February 13, 2017
Country: France
Region: Bordeaux
Vintage: 2014
Score: 98
Very subtle Yquem on the nose with dried pineapple, lemons, green apples and hints of botrytis. The palate grabs you by the arms and shows you superb concentration of spices, dried fruit, phenolics and incredible energy. Nothing is like this from Sauternes this vintage! Drink whenever you like. Spellbinding.

Chateau d'Yquem 2014 Barrel Sample (Sauternes)
Rating: 98
Designation: Barrel Sample
Variety: Bordeaux-style White Blend, White Blend
Appellation: Sauternes, Bordeaux, France
Winery: Chateau d'Yquem
Category: Dessert
Importer: Chateau d'Yquem
Date Published: 4/1/2015
Reviewed by: Roger Voss
97–99. Barrel Sample. Apricot tones with lively acidity give this rich wine a vein of freshness. Pear and white peach notes offer weight, while a lime backbone brings levity. There is a richness from the botrytis that is lifted by this wine's delicious freshness.

d'Yquem 2014 d'Yquem
Points: 97
Sauternes 1er Cru Classe, Bordeaux
Sweet White wine from France
Drinking window: 2020 - 2055
The 2014 d'Yquem has a complex bouquet with buttered toast, almond, honey and peach skin aromas. It opens with greater zeal than its peers, there is more immediacy here. The palate is very well balanced with crisp acidity, a finely tuned and satisfying Sauternes with style and grace, evincing great tension and mineral drive towards the finish. Superb. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.
Neal Martin. Tasting date: February 2018

2014 Chateau d'Yquem (Sauternes)
Points: 97
Very much on the honeyed, citrus side of the style range. Lots of sweet, ripe, very ripe and overripe yellow fruits, ranging from pineapple and grapefruits to candied lemons. There is a lot of sweetness to the wine, paired with bracing acidity [...]. This could be a thinking man's Yquem.
Tasted May 1, 2015

2014 d'Yquem
Producer: d’Yquem
From: France, Bordeaux, Sauternes
Color: White
Type: Sweet
Sweetness: Sweet
Variety: Proprietary Blend
Rating: (96 - 98)
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Issue Date: 29th Apr 2015
Source: 218, The Wine Advocate
Drink Date: 2019 - 2070
[...]. It has a captivating bouquet (I know...I know...what else were you expecting) But it entrances with its pure, wild honey notes mixed with almond and white chocolate scents, bestowed with beguiling delineation and focus. The palate is very poised with the acidity nigh on perfect. Occasionally an Yquem only reveals its components parts at this early juncture, necessitates conjecture. However the 2014 has a sense of harmony and completeness already, as if the elevage is merely there to usher it on to its finished state. There is undeniably great depth here, perhaps less conspicuous than other vintages because of that silver thread of acidity: notes of lemon sherbet, orange zest, shaved ginger and again, a few 'flakes' of white chocolate. It is extremely long with tenderness rather than power on the finish. It's not quite up there in the rarefied heights of say, the 2001 or 2009, but it is what we call in the trade, "the business."

Chateau d'Yquem, Sauternes, 1er Cru Classe Superieur, 2014
Tasted by James Lawther MW
Part of Sauternes: A fresh debate
Points: 96
Drinking Window: 2020 - 2050
Producer: Chateau d’Yquem
Vintage: 2014
Wine Type: Still
Colour: White
Country: France
Region: Bordeaux
Appellation: Sauternes
Sweetness: Sweet
Closure: Cork
Body: Full
Lively, pure and fresh aromas, pear and citrus notes. So rich and concentrated on the palate but with a flare of acidity that provides tension and draws the wine out on the finish.

Ch d'Yquem 2014 Sauternes
Producer: Ch d'Yquem
Appellation: Sauternes
Region: Bordeaux
Country: France
Colour: White
Score: 18/20
When to drink: 2020 – 2050
Published on: 2 Mar 2018
Date tasted: 7 Feb 2018
Reviewer: Jancis Robinson
[...]. Tasted blind. Rather light nose but fabulous excitement underneath. Such tension and depth of detail. Very broad and nervy.