We end the year by drawing your attention to the wines that come at the end of the meal: Dessert wines. Below we highlight what we think are some of the most interesting dessert wines currently available at auction. From the famed and highly coveted, to the obscure and historic, there is a dessert wine for everyone in this week's auction.

2010 Château d'Yquem, 12-bottle Lot, Wood Case

Probably the most famous dessert wine in the world, Chateau d’Yquem is rarely made available in full case lots. The 2010 d’Yquem was called “spellbinding” by James Suckling. The Wine Spectator highlights its “purity and precision”. Jancis Robinson labeled this wine “absolutely stunning”. With a full case, you can enjoy experiencing the evolution of this wine easily over the next 40 years.

1883 Berry Bros. & Co. Tokay Essence, 500ml

One of the most unique wines you’ll find in this or any auction. Bottled and imported to England by the great Berry Bros & Co (now Berry, Bros & Rudd), this very old Tokay Essence represents the sweetest example of this famed wine. 

2009 Hundred Acre Fortification, 1-bottle Lot, Wood Case

This highly allocated Port-like wine comes from one of Napa Valley’s famed Cult wineries. The brandy-infused wine is universally described as highly concentrated. Robert Parker called it “Unbelievably rich, full-bodied and unctuously textured”. The wood case it comes in is an extra special touch. 

Penfolds Great Grandfather Series 3

Originally created in 1994 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Penfolds, the Great Grandfather series. This intensely rich fortified wine comes from a solera with an average blended age of 30 years. Very difficult to find and rare. 

1977 Graham’s Vintage Port

The 1977 port vintage was among the best of the 20th Century. Wines from 1977 are still drinking beautifully. But what makes this lot special is that the wine comes in a 1.5 liter Magnum, something one rarely sees in Vintage Port.

2001 Chateau Rieussec Sauterne

Easily one of the finest Sauterne produced in the past 20 years, this wine resulted in prodigious scores and flattering reviews by critics across the globe. Because it is not d’Yquem, it means this great wine —still not anywhere near fully mature—is an excellent value.

1994 Fonseca Vintage Port 

There is an excellent argument to make that the 1994 Port vintage was among the top five of the entire 20th Century. This wine is nowhere near its peak. The Wine Spectator gave it 100 points and named it the #1 wine of the year. A great wine at an amazing price.

N.V. Yalumba Museum Reserve Release 50-Year-Old Tawny, 375ml

This very special wine was made in the late 1940s. It is a blend of Shiraz, Grenache, Dolcetto Mourvedre, and Muscadelle grapes. Only very small amounts were released. Robert Parker gave it 98 points and called it a “fortified treasure”. This is a historic as well as precious wine.

2005 Inniskillin Gold Vidal Icewine, 375ml

Inniskillin is recognized as among the greatest ice wine producers in the world, let alone Canada. This wine was produced from the Vidal grape, a hybrid with thick skins, making it particularly adapted to freezing temperatures. At over 15 years old, this wine should be drinking perfectly.

1977 Robert Mondavi Special Bunch Selection Botrytis Johannisberg Riesling, 375ml

An extraordinarily rare bottle from Napa Valley’s most famous producer. In the mid-1970s, Mondavi usually left five acres of Riesling unpicked to see if it developed botrytis. It usually didn’t. It did in 1977 and the result was this wine that was produced by careful bunch selection. Very little if any more of this wine is likely still to be found. And at this price for even a half-bottle, it is a great value and piece of history. 

EXPLORE ALL DESSERT WINES