Wine’s Liquid Gold!
Sauternes has got to be one of my favorite dessert wines. I remember having my first domestic Sauterne (Gallo) in the early 1970’s. Just a sweet white wine with not a lot of flavor. Not again. Then on a trip to France in 1974, I had a taste of a real French Sauterne. Now that was more that I ever hoped for. It was full, rich with amazing aromas and flavors. The nose was as if I just started to smell the autumn air full of pleasant aromas, spices and much more. Then the taste, filled my mouth with this golden like honey liquid that hit every inch of my tongue and its senses. There was apricot, honey, pear, apple and so many beautiful flavors, all mixing together to create a wonderful taste. The finish was about as amazing as the taste. It lingered and lasted it seemed for minutes. I could almost feel, the wine gliding down my throat. I would have to say in all of my wine experiences, no other wine has had that long lasting finish as a good Sauterne.
Now, a good French Sauterne is not inexpensive. It comes from the village of Sauterne ( Sauternais district )in the Graves region of Bordeaux. The grapes used are Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle. But what really makes this wine special, is the over ripening of the grapes.
The French term is Botrytis Cinerea or Noble Rot
This Noble Rot is also used in making the famous German Trockenbeerenauslese and the Hungarian Tokaji Aszú (many variations with the numbers 3,4 or 5)
Probably the most famous of all French Sauternes is Château d’Yquem. 
It was rated as a Superior First Growth, the only Sauterne given this rating. I was fortunate enough to taste a 1959 Château d’Yquem. It was a wine that I will never forget. These wines when properly stored can last a century!
The development of Botrytis cinerea is the key to a syrupy wine. In favorable conditions, with a combination of alternating rain and sun and a beautiful autumn season, grapes experience degradation through the development of this exceptional noble rot. This famous fungus roasts grapes by drying them out, which concentrates the sugar. Harvest 
takes place exclusively by successive sorting (between three to five passages). Only grapes that have reached the ripening status are harvested, so the harvest must be hand-operated. That’s why yields are low (25 hl/ha maximum and even 8 hl/ha for some producers) and prices are high.
Once harvested, grapes are pressed, which ensures the delicate and progressive extraction of juice. After a slight settling, the must ferments in barrels (20% of barrels are renewed each year). The slow fermentation lasts from three to four weeks. Breeding is done in barrels for 12 to 18 months, depending on the vintage. Wines are bottled after a single filtration. Sauternes wines must have a minimum of 13% alcohol content and pass a tasting exam. There is no regulation about the exact amount of residual sugar that the wine needs to have.
Sauternes has been granted Protected designation of origin (PDO), and comes from the communes of Sauternes, Fargues, Bommes, Preignac, and Barsac, all of which are situated in the Graves region.
I am most familiar with wines from Barsac. It is made the same way as a Sauterne, but generally is a bit lighter in body and less expensive. I have never had any of the wines from those other communes.
A little story: in 1837, Marquis de Lur-Saluces 
went to hunt wolves in Russia and gave the order to wait for his return before beginning the harvest. His journey home was delayed, and the noble rot had turned the grapes into prestigious wine nectar by the time he returned. https://frenchfoodintheus.org/849
Do yourself a big favor, when you have a little extra cash, splurge and buy a bottle of a French Sauterne. You dont need to buy the Yquems, since there are many other excellent Sauternes.
Chateau Giraud
Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey
Chateau Raymond-Lafon
Chateau Guiraud (Barsac)
Just like the classification of Red Bordeaux, there is a 1855 Classification of Sauternes and Barsac. You will notice that Château d’Yquem. is not on this list, that is because it has its own special ranking – Premier Cru Supérieur
First Growth Premiers Crus
La Tour Blanche
Lafaurie-Peyraguey
Clos Haut Peyraguey
Rayne Vigneau
Suduiraut
Coutet
Climens
Guiraud
Rieussec
Raubaud Promis
Sigalas Rabaud
Second Growths (Deuxièmes Crus)
de Myrat
Doisy Daene
Doisy Dubroca
Doisy Vedrines
d’Arche
Filhot
Broustet
Nairac
Caillou
Suau
de Malle
Romer
Lamothe Despujols
Lamothe Guignard