Monbazillac

Monbazillac is a rich, sweet white wine from southwestern France, usually made from Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle grapes affected by noble rot. Expect apricot, peach and citrus with honey, marmalade and floral notes. Luscious but fresh, it’s brilliant with blue cheese, foie gras, cheesecake, crème brûlée and fruit tarts.

Taste:

Sweet, honeyed and bringing serious dessert energy.

Monbazillac is typically full-bodied and sweet, with flavours of apricot, peach, orange and citrus alongside honey, marmalade and white flowers.

Noble rot can add extra layers of dried fruit and spice, while ageing may bring richer flavours of caramel, nuts and vanilla.

Despite all that sweetness, good Monbazillac keeps enough acidity to stay balanced and fresh rather than becoming heavy.

If you like Sauternes but your bank account has asked you to explore other options, Monbazillac has entered the chat.

Food Pairings:

Monbazillac is brilliant with rich desserts and salty, strongly flavoured food.

Blue cheese is a classic match, particularly Stilton and Roquefort, where the saltiness balances the wine’s sweetness.

Foie gras and pâté are also excellent partners, with the acidity helping cut through their richness.

For dessert, try cheesecake, crème brûlée, apricot tart, peach tart, fruit tart, lemon tart or tarte tatin. Desserts featuring honey, caramel, peach, apricot or citrus work particularly well.

It also pairs beautifully with fresh peaches and apricots.

As with most dessert wines, make sure the wine is at least as sweet as whatever you’re serving alongside it. Monbazillac understood the assignment.

Similar Wines:

If you enjoy Monbazillac, Sauternes is the obvious next stop for another famous sweet wine made from similar Bordeaux grape varieties and often using noble rot.

Tokaji offers another legendary combination of sweetness, honeyed fruit and brilliant acidity.

Beerenauslese takes you towards Germany and Austria for another concentrated sweet style, while Icewine achieves its intense sweetness using naturally frozen grapes.

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More About Monbazillac:

Monbazillac comes from the Bergerac wine region in southwestern France, just east of Bordeaux, and is made primarily from Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle.

The vineyards sit around the village of Monbazillac near the Dordogne River, where autumn conditions can encourage Botrytis cinerea, or noble rot, to develop on the grapes.

The fungus causes the berries to shrivel, concentrating their sugar, acidity and flavour before harvest and helping create Monbazillac’s rich, honeyed character.

The similarities with neighbouring Sauternes are obvious, but Monbazillac has its own appellation, history and identity – and can often offer seriously good value.

Less famous neighbour. Same talent for turning mouldy grapes into something you'd happily serve at dinner.

Wine is weird.