A 15-vintage vertical declared how magnificently Freycinet Riesling can age, particularly since 2003, the first under screw cap, and one of the greatest Tasmanian rieslings I’ve tasted. 2013 is impressively elegant, delightfully alluring and breathtakingly floral, dancing with graceful lime, lemon blossom and granny smith apple purity. Its acidity is already well integrated, soft yet […]
readArticles
A cellaring special, this is a beautifully honed and linear riesling that rides on a high-tensile rail of Tamar Valley acidity. It’s crunchy, honed and intricately pure in its expression of kaffir lime, lemon zest and apple blossom, with a finely textured, mineral mouth feel. $17.50 at Discount Wines and Jim Murphy.
readA commanding riesling that demands time to soften, in spite of its alluring appeal. A pretty bouquet declares granny smith apple, kaffir lime zest and pepper aromas. The palate is beautifully pure, impeccably honed and intricately structured, with a fine, slatey, mineral mouth feel and a razor line of acidity. $18 at Cracka.
readAt an unctuous 205g/L residual sugar, this is at the sweet end of Australian dessert riesling, yet it holds itself with considerable composure thanks to exceptional acid drive to counter this considerable sweetness, creating a wonderful synergy of tension. A wine of excellent length and balance, dripping with a preserved lemon, ripe apricot, locut, nectarine, […]
readSteve Lubiana now makes two rieslings from the same fruit, under the same name. The tank fermented, inoculated rendition is the one with the blue label. It’s a pristine, delightfully youthful and impressively textured style of focused granny smith apple and tangy kaffir lime fruit that lingers with excellent persistence. Steve stops the ferment by […]
readFrom two vineyards on the eastern banks of the Tamar River, this is a tiny production of just 300 cases. It’s a pristine medium dry style of lively granny smith apple, lime cordial and lemon juice, with tense northern Tasmanian acidity neatly balanced by well integrated residual sweetness (30g/L). It finishes long, honed and pure. […]
readA brand new riesling for Steve Lubiana, wild yeast fermented in six year old puncheons to create a style of beautiful spice and texture, without oak flavour. The effect is captivating, with alluring focus and persistence and a rounded structure with nothing of the searing acid backbone that defines many dry Tasmanian rieslings. Pristine purity […]
readPooley’s wines impressed me so much during my recent tastings in Tasmania, that I immediately made an appointment to visit Anna Pooley the very next day. From some of the oldest vines in the 1985 estate on the Coal River Valley, this is a riesling of great length and potential. It’s intense and taut, with […]
readA spicy and textural riesling from Derwent Valley and Coal River Valley fruit, providing a lemon juice, grapefruit zest and golden delicious apple bouquet and a peppery, spicy and textural palate built on gentle phenolic grip and tense Tasmanian acidity. It lingers very long and even. $23 at The Glass.
readIn contrast to Steve Lubiana’s two rieslings made in different ways from the same fruit, it’s the fruit sources that distinguish Nick Glaetzer’s Tasmanian rieslings. The gold dot on the bottle denotes what he considers to be better parcels of fruit, here 40% Tamar Valley and 60% Coal River Valley, with a total production of […]
read