Long before Ross and Rachel were on a break, Château Sigalas-Rabaud was breaking up and getting back together with its other half. Originally part of Château Rabaud, it became Sigalas Rabaud in 1903, was reunited into Rabaud in 1929 then divided again into Sigalas Rabaud in 1952. Confused? Just to make matters worse, there is also a Château Rabaud Promis, owned and operated by another branch of the Sigalas family (but we won’t go into that here). And that is just the tip of the iceberg of this estate’s history.

Founded in 1660, the domain was sold to Rabaud in 1819 by the then mayor of Bommes. Sold again in 1863 to Henri Drouilhet de Sigalas, Henri added his own name but kept Rabaud for prosperity (it was a Premier Cru after all). In 1930 both Sigalas Rabaud and Rabaud were run as one. However, a world war, bad management and several poor vintages made the wine difficult to sell and the vineyards were once again separated so that the owners of Rabaud could buy Château Margaux. The estate has been run since 2007 by Laure de Lambert Compeyrot, daughter of Gerard de Lambert des Granges. With the 2009 vintage, she introduced the first dry white wine of the estate.

Set in 14.25 hectares of prime pebbly clay terroir, Château Sigalas-Rabaud has the auspicious title of being the smallest producer of Premier Cru Sauternes. Planted with 85% Semillon (the remainder being Sauvignon and some Muscadelle), the 40-year old vine’s neighbour is superstar sauternes Château d’Yquem, although Sigalas Rabaud has yet to gain Yquem’s giddy price heights. Yields are very low at just 17 hectolitres per hectare and sold 100% in bond to negociants. This makes Château Sigalas-Rabaud impossible to find on the primary market, yet relatively easy on the secondary. Export is well distributed throughout the USA, Europe and Asia. Value is holding steady at between €30-40 (September 17 – May 2019) per bottle for the spectacular 2010.