YALUMBA FSW BOTRYTIS VIOGNIER 2023 375ml

Winery notes (2023 Vintage)
"Dewy mornings, soft mists and warm sun on ripe grapes – perfect for ‘Botrytis cinerea’ and the naturally alluring Viognier grape to create the golden nectar that becomes FSW.

The flavours of Viognier have a wonderful synergy with the flavours of botrytised wines and Wrattonbully seems to be a perfect region for making them. Fruit ripens naturally with high sugar and rich flavours in the warm summer and then waits for autumn with dewy mornings and sunny days to initiate and sustain the growth of the Botrytis fungus. Botrytis metabolises the berries, desiccating them, increasing the sugar concentration and contributing its unique flavour.

The wine is pale gold in colour. Aromas of intense honeysuckle, musk and vanilla with notes of lemon thyme and ginger. The palate, with high residual sugar, is long and luscious with opulent flavours of stone fruit and spice. The balance is perfect, delicately poised between sweetness and acidity with a memorable, lingering finish. Delicious with tarte Tatin and cinnamon ice cream, Baklava or lemon curd and Italian meringue tartlets. Also pairs wonderfully with blue cheese. 160 g/L RS."

5 Stars, Number 2 & Best Buy Cuisine Sweet Wine Tasting, November 2024 (2023 Vintage)
"Mid-gold in the glass with aromas of apricot kernel and some subtle dried grass on the nose. The palate is flavour packed and complex with layered stone fruit and spices. Rich and sweet but really beautifully balanced and very long."

93/100 Shanteh Wale, James Halliday's Wine Companion, August 2024 (2023 Vintage)
"Peaches in rose syrup, musk and dandelion. Candied orange and apricot hull. Dried mango and chamomile tea. A wealth of fuzzy apricot skin texture with lingering acidity. Lusciously sweet but well balanced. A honey nut praline on the finish."

93/100 Stuart Knox, The Real Review, January 2024 (2023 Vintage)
"Full straw-gold colour. Apricot preserve, honeysuckle and cardamom aromatics. Full and sweet with honey and ripe fig at the core. It's well balanced by a bitter apricot kernel note and acidity works well to balance the sugars. Good length and finishes rich, yet clean."

Erin Larkin, RobertParker.com, Wine Advocate, May 2024 (2023 Vintage)
"The 2023 FSW Botrytis Viognier is from Wrattonbully, on the Limestone Coast, and leads with a nose resplendent with apricots, spring flowers, musk sticks, candy floss, frangipani, lemon curd and sherbet. In the mouth, the wine is sweet and plump and layered with honeycomb and butter. It's delicious. It's very pretty and floral, and the sweetness is balanced. Nicely done."