Château d'Yquem Caisse Trilogie 1948 - 1949 - 1950

A rare vertical of three post-war vintages from an iconic Premier Cru Supérieur of Sauternes

The estate

Passed down since 1593, Château d'Yquem is today a House within the LVMH group, which formalized its acquisition in 1999. Located in the commune of Sauternes, in Gironde, the estate covers 113 hectares and remains the only Premier Cru Supérieur in the 1855 classification. Its governance brings together Pierre Lurton, Chairman of the Board since 2004, and Lorenzo Pasquini, appointed Managing Director in 2025, continuing a historic expertise devoted to the great sweet wines of Bordeaux.

The vineyard

The Château d'Yquem vineyard lies in the heart of the Sauternes appellation, close to the Ciron valley, whose morning mists encourage the development of botrytis. The soils, composed of gravel, sand, clay and limestone, are worked according to a fine parcel-by-parcel selection. The vines, with an average age of around thirty-three years, are managed using traditional practices that are now certified organic.

The case

This Trilogie case brings together three consecutive vintages of Château d'Yquem, 1948, 1949 and 1950, from the immediate post-war years. This period marked a phase of reconstruction for the Bordeaux vineyards, during which the estate nevertheless managed to produce sweet wines of fine quality. An invitation to a sensory and historical journey through three great vintages of Château d'Yquem, this Trilogie case presents wines almost eighty years old, witnesses to a world in the midst of change, which have stood the test of time while retaining their amber radiance and remarkable aromatic complexity.

Château d'Yquem 1948 — radiance and balance
This 1948 vintage immediately impresses with its fruitiness, blending ripe citrus (mandarin, kumquat, bergamot, bitter orange peel), apricot paste, candied quince and powdery floral notes of carnation. On the palate, the balance is striking: tension and concentration come together in a lively, steady wine, whose airy finish is carried by fine, elegant bitter notes.

Château d'Yquem 1949 — richness and maturity

Initially reserved, the 1949 gradually unfolds with notes of bitter orange peel and prune, followed by aged aromas of myrrh, incense, beeswax and sandalwood, enhanced by a spicy freshness of caraway. On the palate, it shows all its grandeur: silky and fleshy from the attack, remarkably dense on the mid-palate, it envelops the senses with fullness and stretches into a long finish with distinguished bitter notes.

Château d'Yquem 1950 — tension and delicacy

This 1950 stands out for its remarkable purity and vivacity on the nose, combining candied citrus, dried apricot, fig, date, oriental essences (oud), cocoa and Madagascar vanilla. On the palate, it is its surprising freshness that captivates: a vertical tension makes the mid-palate airy, while the finish reveals a lovely salinity that enhances the characteristic notes of a great noble rot wine. A rare and precious tasting experience, a true heritage to cherish.