Château d'Yquem
シャトー・ディケム
The world's only Premier Cru Supérieur — the undisputed pinnacle of Sauternes.
Sauternes' sole Premier Cru Supérieur, producing the world's greatest botrytised sweet wine of unparalleled concentration, complexity, and longevity.
www.yquem.fr ↗Cuvées
シャトー・ディケム
Château d'Yquem
SweetSémillon · Sauvignon Blanc
Château d'Yquem is the only estate in Sauternes awarded Premier Cru Supérieur in the 1855 Classification — a tier above all others. Each harvest involves multiple passes through the vineyard picking only botrytis-affected grapes one by one, meaning the estate sometimes produces fewer than one glass of wine per vine. The resulting wine offers staggering complexity with decades — even centuries — of aging potential, balancing honey, saffron, and tropical fruit with vibrant acidity.
イグレック・ド・イケム
Y de Yquem
WhiteSauvignon Blanc · Sémillon
Y de Yquem is the rare dry white wine produced by the legendary Château d'Yquem in Sauternes. Unlike the estate's world-famous sweet wines, Y is crafted from a blend dominated by Sauvignon Blanc, with Sémillon added for complexity. It is not produced every year; the estate only releases it when the conditions are perfect for both dry and sweet wine production. The wine undergoes fermentation in barrels and aging on fine lees, resulting in a sophisticated profile characterized by intense aromatics, vibrant acidity, and a rich, textured palate that balances freshness with the profound depth expected from the Yquem terroir.
Who Is This For?
For serious collectors and connoisseurs seeking the ultimate expression of botrytized sweet wine — ideal for milestone celebrations and long-term cellaring.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why is Château d'Yquem so expensive?
- The price reflects extreme production costs: up to 150 pickers make multiple passes through the vineyard by hand to select only berries perfectly concentrated by noble rot, yields are famously as low as one glass of wine per vine, and in weak vintages the estate declassifies or abandons the entire crop rather than release a wine unworthy of the Yquem name.
- How long can Château d'Yquem be aged?
- Château d'Yquem has one of the longest lifespans of any wine in the world. A 20-year-old bottle is still considered young, and top vintages remain vibrant after 50 to 100 years or more, thanks to the wine's exceptional balance of high sugar content and acidity.
- Does Château d'Yquem pair well with food?
- Yes — classic pairings include foie gras, Roquefort and other blue cheeses, and fruit-based desserts, but it also pairs beautifully with savory Japanese dishes such as miso-glazed fish, unagi, and high-grade sushi thanks to its acidity cutting through richness.
- What is Château d'Yquem's winemaking philosophy?
- The estate's philosophy is excellence at any cost: as estate manager Lorenzo Pasquini has put it, the beauty of the wine comes at the price of great uncertainty and potential loss, but accepting that risk is what allows Yquem to harvest fruit of sublime concentration in a good year — and to walk away entirely in a poor one.