Could cocktails save Sauternes?
Sauternes has not been favoured by shifting drinking habits, with the botrytised wines flying in the face of the movement towards fresh, light pours. But, like Port before it, one producer is looking to mixology to introduce the sweet wines to a new audience. db reports.
From 1991 to 2023, Sauternes vineyard prices plummeted by more than 90% – representing a compound average growth rate of -7% per year, according to data from Agreste/SAFER, Le prix des terres.
And, as Jancis Robinson MW penned last year, the intensely sweet wines are currently “so unfashionable that prices are ridiculously modest in view of the difficulty of making it – far cheaper than equivalent red Bordeaux”.
The golden wines dramatically fly in the face of current drinking trends, with consumers increasingly favouring light, fresh, low ABV styles over rich, powerful pours. This, combined with drooping fine wine sales, have seen Sauternes shrink: Liv-ex’s Sauternes 50 index fell by 6% in 2024.
But, like Port producers before them, who are tapping into mixology in Porto to revive the category, one producer in Sauternes believes cocktails could be the key to winning round a new generation of consumers to sweet wine.
This is Château d’Arche. A Second Grand Cru Classé in 1855, the Château embodies more than four centuries of history and prestige in the heart of Sauternes. But now, the business is modernising while respecting its roots.
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Damien Cressot, export director at Château d’Arche, said: “We are regularly contacted by mixologists and cocktail houses to associate our Sauternes in the creation of trendy cocktails with our innovative second wine, the Soleil d’Arche.
“The sweet side of Sauternes and the concentration of exotic fruit flavors are a perfect combination for numerous cocktails.
“The demand for Sauternes in cocktails comes from the final customers and the new wave of mixologists who are not afraid to shake up the old tradition of Sauternes consumption.”
Last October, for instance, the winery ran a special masterclass and a week dedicated to cocktails made with Sauternes, at Nektar – a cocktail bar in Bordeaux.
While the Château has not modified the style of its Satuternes to suit modern trends, Cressot says that the style of Chateau d’Arche Grand Cru Classé has always balanced sweetness, acidity and bitterness. “This elegant style and the drinkability of our Sauternes are now trendier and fit better the new drinking habits, especially among young people,” he adds.
In addition to expanding into mixology, the producer is developing fresh packaging styles to reach a broader audience, as well as boosting its social media strategy, as well as drawing in wine lovers with an events programme that spans concerts, tastings and after-work events.
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