Weekend wine with Blake Creedon

THE sémillon grape isn’t used to the glare of publicity, but it suddenly popped up last week when a French restaurateur paid a record €85,000 for a bottle of Chateau d’Yquem 1811 — the most expensive bottle of white wine ever sold.

Despite its obscurity and unconscionable price it fetched in that PR stunt, the grape is highly relevant to us ordinary wine fans too.

Along with smaller portions of sauvignon blanc and muscadelle, sémillon is the major grape behind that Sauternes dessert wine style of Bordeaux. And the ‘dry’ white wines of the same region also depend to a great extent on the grape. But unlike sauvignon, sémillon only rarely turns up on its own, and you may have trouble finding a single-varietal bottle — even in well-stocked wine shops. But it’s well worth seeking out.