Semillion grape variety is a golden skinned grape variety and is rather heavy with low acidity and an almost oily in texture and is used for the formation of dry and sweet white wines, mostly in Australia and France. Wine based on this grape age a long time and it has a high yield. Semillion come under one of only three approved white wine varieties in the Bordeaux region.
It is an important white grape of Bordeaux, including the Sauternes and prized dessert wine. Wines can be surprisingly rich in its flavor when oaked, and can taste similar to Chardonnay. Semillon is easy to cultivate and vigorous in nature, and buds later, (but ripe early) than its most common blending partner, Sauvignon Blanc.
Certainly, when the grapes are affected by the noble rot, Botrytis cinerea, they take on gnarled textures and darker hues; viticulturists view the sight with excitement and anticipation.
Semillion Wine Taste
Primary fruit flavors in Semillon wine are pear, apple, lemon and green papaya that too depending on where semillion is grown. It can range from being a zesty, palate cleansing wine like Sauvignon Blanc to a creamy, rich, lemon flavored wine like best oaked chardonnay.
Is Semillion a Best Dessert Wine?
Semillion is used to make great dry whites and sublime dessert wines. In Bordeaux, Semillion is blended with small amounts of Muscadelle to produce sweet white wine of Sauternes, the most famous, being Chateau d Yquem. When vinified, sweet wine made from this grape can take on a multitude of flavors, particularly stonefruit such as mango, nectarine, apricot and peach with secondary notes of nut and honey.
Perhaps the wine’s remarkable feature is its silken texture due to the concentration of glycerol and sugar.
Is Semillion a acid wine?
Often lacking the acid required balancing its weight; this wine is often blended with Sauvignon Blanc. Muscadelle is further added to enhance the fruitiness of the white Bordeaux Blend. Semillion wines may be barrel aged, while fresher examples of these are typically fermented in stainless steel.
The winemakers balance the sweetness with acidity so that the wine does not turn out tasting like pancake syrup. Popular low acid whites are: Marsanne, Viognier and Semillion. For reds, it would go more by climate than variety, you can watch out for Sangiovese, Barbera, Grenache and Carignane. They are naturally high in acidity.
Is Semillion a dry white wine?
Semillion blends are often labeled as Classic Dry White wine. The lemony notes of Semillon are often noticeable in the blends, mainly from Margaret River where the herbal, grassy tines are more pronounced. As a dry wine, Semillion required the unique set of conditions in order to make the quality wine. In the Hunter Valley, just above north of Sydney, few say that a certain amount of rain is actually beneficial to the production of unoaked Semillion.
The best Hunter Valley Semillions have very high acidity that has been used to be referred to as Hunter Valley Riesling. Most of these wines are longest living dry white wines in the world.
