what is Botrytis (noble rot)?
It’s a fungus that infects grapes, causing them to rot, and it goes under the scientific name of Botrytis cinerea. If it attacks unripe or damaged grapes, it is a disaster. But this particular cloud has a silver lining. In certain wine regions, notably Sauternes in Bordeaux, Vouvray, Bonnezeaux and Coteaux du Layon of the Loire, Tokay in Hungary and various regions of Germany, Botrytis attacks ripe, healthy white grapes, causing them to shrivel. (I have had a botrytised red wine before, but these are unusual and rare.) These disgusting, mouldy looking grapes yield small quantities of extremely concentrated juice that is then used to make sublime sweet white wines of great complexity and longevity. This benevolent form of Botrytis is also known as noble rot in English, pourriture noble in French and Edelfule in German. What sort of flavours should you expect in a botrytized wine? There is often the tang of thick-cut marmalade, together with apricot-like flavours. The texture will be ric
