Nobody is claiming that the Beringer Sauternes-styles Nightingale dessert wine is a replacement for Chateau d'Yquem (well, the legendary winemaker who invented this wine may have claimed exactly that). This bottle also comes with a great tale of California wine history. in the 1950s, Myron Nightingale and his wife Alice developed a method of isolating the famous botrytis fungus, responsible for France's greatest sweet wine, and innoculating their pedigreed Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon grapes to make an imitation of Sauternes. They were ahead of their time, but today it is considered one of the great truly Californian sweet wines, and Beringer still makes it in their honor. Expect luscious orchard fruit, from oranges to apricots to yellow peaches and even pineapple, drizzled in honey and poured slowly into your mouth by a young farm maiden. The 2004 is even young enough to keep around your cellar another 5-10 years.
