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Although most of the grape harvest is now finished and most wines are now burbling away in fermentation mode, sweet wines which are "late harvested" are only now starting to be picked in late October.
At Saussignac (24 Dordogne, Aquitaine) the harvest started this week, and whereas some appellations go heavily into ceremony and dressing-up, here they decided to invite a range of merchants and restauranteurs to participate in the harvest - as one way of raising the profile of this small sub-appellation of Bergerac.
Traditionally the appellation has been for white wines only, which can be medium or sweet, but increasingly the production is focusing on the dessert or liqoureux wine, made solely from the Semillon grape. As such it is not dissimilar to nearby Monbazillac or more distant Sauternes, all relying on the "noble rot" to concentrate the sugars in the grape.
Personally I find Saussignac slightly less sugary then Monbazillac and less caramelly than many Sauternes. However, much will depend on the winemaker of course.
For excellent Saussignac I would recommend Chateau Grinou (see www.frenchduck.co.uk/grinou.html for more info) - only current UK stockist I can find is www.vintners-selection.com although www.frenchflavour.co.uk has a gift box which also includes some Foie Gras - very decadent.!
For Monbazillac try Chateau la Truffière - made by same winemaker as Pecharmant's Chateau Beauportail - available from www.easy-wine.co.uk