Thanks sémillon: the underestimated grape that’s increasingly sought after

Sémillon is a greatly underrated grape. Wine people usually think of it as a supporting cast member, rarely as the star. So it’s perhaps surprising to learn that there are more than 11,000 hectares of sémillon in France alone – mostly in Bordeaux and Bergerac – making it the third most planted white grape, behind sauvignon blanc and char­donnay. It is an early ripening grape that is fairly high yielding (14-20 tonnes per hectare) and quite hardy, but prone to...