We finished the tasting with a dessert wine that’s only been made previously in 1999 and 2003. There are only four barrels (all new) of the 2015 Condrieu Luminescence (100% Viognier), a massive, decadent and unctuously-textured elixir that offers a singular bouquet of honey, crème caramel, mulled pear and apricots. Tasting like the pure syrup of Condrieu, it’s a perfect wine to drink with a cheese course or fruit tart over the coming 3-4 years.

A new offering from Guigal is a sweet dessert wine made in the style of Condrieus of the last century. Ten thousand, two hundred, 375 ml bottles of the 1999 Condrieu La Luminescence were produced. A ripe, concentrated Condrieu, it possesses 37 grams of residual sugar per liter, and 15% alcohol. It was aged half in new oak and half in old, and malolactic fermentation was blocked (a first in the Guigal cellars). The result is a honeyed wine that can be served as either an aperitif or with fresh fruit desserts. It possesses unctuous, honeyed, orange marmalade, and pear liqueur aromas and flavors. This pure, impressive sweet dessert offering is best drunk over the next 2-5 years. Importer: Fred Ek, Ex Cellars Wine Agencies, Solvang, CA; tel. (805) 686-9153