Sémillon Quiz
Two rounds, instant scoring, no sign-up. See how well you know Sémillon, then keep a tasting journal to remember what you learn.
What this quiz covers
12 questions across two rounds: 6 beginner and 6 advanced. Here's what you'll be asked:
- What color is Sémillon wine?
- Which of the following is a signature region for Sémillon?
- Sémillon is famously used to make which style of dessert wine?
- Which grape is Sémillon most classically blended with in Bordeaux whites?
- How does Sémillon generally feel in the mouth compared to Sauvignon Blanc?
- Which fungus plays a key role in producing sweet Sémillon wines like Sauternes?
- Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia, is renowned for a distinctive style of dry Sémillon. What is a key characteristic of this style?
- In Bordeaux's Pessac-Léognan appellation, dry Sémillon-dominant whites are often aged in oak. How does this differ from the approach typically used for Sauvignon Blanc-dominant white Bordeaux?
- What makes Sémillon particularly susceptible to Botrytis cinerea in Sauternes?
- How does the aroma profile of Sémillon typically differ from that of Sauvignon Blanc?
- Château d'Yquem in Sauternes uses a grape selection method called 'tries successives.' What does this involve?
- In the context of white Bordeaux blending, what does Sémillon primarily contribute alongside Sauvignon Blanc?
Study notes: answers & key facts (open to reveal)
- What color is Sémillon wine? White. Sémillon is a white grape variety that produces white wines ranging from dry and crisp to rich and lusciously sweet.
- Which of the following is a signature region for Sémillon? Bordeaux, France. Bordeaux is one of the most celebrated homes of Sémillon, where it is blended with Sauvignon Blanc to make both dry and sweet wines.
- Sémillon is famously used to make which style of dessert wine? Sauternes. Sauternes, from Bordeaux, is made predominantly from Sémillon grapes that have been affected by noble rot (Botrytis cinerea), concentrating sugars and flavors.
- Which grape is Sémillon most classically blended with in Bordeaux whites? Sauvignon Blanc. Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc are the classic white Bordeaux pairing, with Sauvignon Blanc adding freshness and aroma to Sémillon's body and texture.
- How does Sémillon generally feel in the mouth compared to Sauvignon Blanc? Fuller and oilier. Sémillon has naturally low acidity and a rich, waxy, almost oily texture, making it feel fuller-bodied in the mouth than the crisper, more aromatic Sauvignon Blanc.
- Which fungus plays a key role in producing sweet Sémillon wines like Sauternes? Botrytis cinerea. Botrytis cinerea, known as 'noble rot,' dehydrates Sémillon grapes on the vine, concentrating their sugars and adding complex honeyed flavors to the resulting wine.
- Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia, is renowned for a distinctive style of dry Sémillon. What is a key characteristic of this style? It develops toasty, honeyed complexity with age despite being unoaked. Hunter Valley Sémillon is typically harvested early, fermented in steel, and bottled young, yet it transforms over a decade into a strikingly complex wine with toast, lanolin, and honey notes, a rare example of profound aging without oak.
- In Bordeaux's Pessac-Léognan appellation, dry Sémillon-dominant whites are often aged in oak. How does this differ from the approach typically used for Sauvignon Blanc-dominant white Bordeaux? Sémillon's weight and texture can integrate oak particularly well, while some Sauvignon Blanc-led Bordeaux whites use stainless steel or other reductive methods to emphasize aromatics; however, many Sauvignon Blanc-dominant examples are also fermented or aged in oak.. Sémillon's weight and low acidity allow it to integrate oak well, gaining complexity and longevity, whereas Sauvignon Blanc's volatile aromatics are often better preserved through cooler, reductive tank fermentation.
- What makes Sémillon particularly susceptible to Botrytis cinerea in Sauternes? Its thin skin allows the fungus to penetrate and dehydrate the berry efficiently. Sémillon's notably thin skin is easily penetrated by Botrytis cinerea, allowing water evaporation and sugar concentration while the fungus contributes glycerol and complex honeyed, dried-fruit aromatics.
- How does the aroma profile of Sémillon typically differ from that of Sauvignon Blanc? Sémillon shows beeswax, lanolin, and stone fruit rather than Sauvignon Blanc's grassy, herbaceous, and grapefruit notes. Sémillon tends toward quieter, more textural aromas, beeswax, lanolin, lemon curd, and fig, whereas Sauvignon Blanc is prized for its pungent, expressive notes of cut grass, capsicum, and tropical citrus.
- Château d'Yquem in Sauternes uses a grape selection method called 'tries successives.' What does this involve? Multiple passes through the vineyard to hand-select only optimally botrytised berries at each visit. Tries successives requires harvesters to pass through the vines repeatedly, often multiple times in a single vintage, picking only those individual berries or clusters that have reached ideal botrytis concentration.
- In the context of white Bordeaux blending, what does Sémillon primarily contribute alongside Sauvignon Blanc? Body, texture, and aging potential. Sémillon contributes the wine's structural backbone, its broad body, creamy texture, and the capacity to evolve gracefully over many years, qualities that Sauvignon Blanc generally contributes less strongly on its own.
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