Sauternes and Seafood: A Match Made in Heaven for the Asian Palate

Damon Yuen shares his discovery of Clos Dady’s Sauternes.

Described by some as the Nectar of the Gods, Sauternes is a sweet Bordeaux wine made from special grapes affected by the botrytis cinerea (a kind of fungus) arising from the fog of the Ciron River running across the appellation of Sauternes. Its traditional pairings are Foie Gras and Roquefort Cheese, but for many of us with a Chinese palate who prefer something sweet and find it difficult to digest Western cheeses, could there be an alternative marriage for us?

I finally discovered such possibilities in my recent encounter with Catherine Gachet, owner and winemaker of boutique Sauternes producer, Clos Dady. Catherine takes unusual care in the entire wine-making process of her Sauternes involving:

• Picking the freshest botrytised berries 7 times a year
• Employing only women in the harvest who exercise greater patience and delicacy
• Barrel Fermentation; a more labour intensive method used by only 5 out of 150 Sauternes  producers. The result is a much more natural wine with less need for filtration
• Keeping residual sugar by stopping fermentation. This is done through a reduction in temperature rather than using large doses of CO2.

The result is an unusually elegant Sauternes with a breezy freshness evident in Clos Dady Sauternes ‘Château de Bastard’ 2007 (Sémillon/Sauvignon Blanc/Muscadelle). Made from a blend of both golden and fully-botrytised berries, the wine is a brilliant pale gold colour with a complex floral nose of lemon, dried mango and apricots. Aromatic and elegant, it has a well-balanced sugar-acid tone and unusual minerality with a fresh, clean, long finish.

I have paired this wine with “har gow” dim sum (steamed shrimp dumplings), Vietnamese rice paper rolls, Thai crab salad and even raw oysters with a pinch of lime and lemon grass and have noticed a dramatic increase in the freshness and minerality of the seafood, leaving a beautiful savoury feeling in the mouth. The sweetness of Catherine’s Sauternes blends seamlessly with the natural sweetness of these “Fruits of the Sea”. Add a little sweet and sour Thai chili sauce or Chiu Chow chili sauce and the result sings. This is the new marriage made in heaven for the Asian Palate.

Damon Yuen is a Certified Sommelier and Court of Master Sommeliers. He is a Wine & Spirits Educator, Writer and Consultant with over 27 years of experience in the Hong Kong food and beverage sector. He regularly teaches at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and PEAK VTC and has his own wine blog.