When to drink a Sauternes?

Bordeaux · indicative values: the producer, the vintage and storage conditions come first.

Map: where Sauternes is. Bordeaux region, France.

Sweet and fortified: the drinking window

Recommended ageing: 5 to 40 years after the vintage.

For example, a 2020 Sauternes drinks best between 2025 and 2060, with a peak plateau around 2037-2053.

Vintage by vintage

A great year outlives an average one: the window moves with the vintage. The most recent rated years in Bordeaux, applied to the ageing for Sauternes given above.

Vintage	Rating	Drink
2022	Great	2027–2066
2021	Great	2026–2065
2020	Good	2025–2060
2019	Great	2024–2063
2018	Good	2023–2058
2017	Great	2022–2061
2016	Great	2021–2060
2015	Great	2020–2059
2013	Good	2018–2053
2011	Great	2016–2055
2010	Great	2015–2054
2009	Great	2014–2053

The full history, back to the older vintages: Sauternes and sweet Bordeaux.

How to read this window

Before the window opens, the wine is in its youth: fruit dominates, tannins or acidity can feel stern. During the peak plateau, everything falls into balance: this is the moment ageing prepares. Beyond it, the wine slowly declines: nothing unsafe, but the emotion fades. These are general benchmarks for the appellation, not a verdict on your bottle.

Curious where these numbers come from? The method is published in full: five levels from the estate down to the grape, corrected by the vintage and the bottle format.

Which dishes?

The classic pairings where Sauternes is one of the safe bets:

From the same region

Other appellations in Bordeaux, each with its own window:

What about your bottles?

Caviste computes this window for every bottle in your cellar: photograph the label, the sheet fills itself in (estate, vintage, appellation) and the app tells you when a bottle reaches its peak. Discover Caviste.