Tag Archives: Riesling

Frankland Estate Poison Hill Vineyard Riesling 2012

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Taste through a region and its strengths become abundantly clear. Although many producers’ portfolios in Australia can lack focus and muddy the waters on paper, some variety and region combinations jump out with a bit of exploration. After a few days in Great Southern, it’s blindingly obvious to me that Riesling finds a natural home here, and I’m falling in love with the regional, and sub-regional, expressions of this variety. It’s no exaggeration to suggest I’m rediscovering the deliciousness of Riesling through these pristine, powdery, lime-infused wines.

Frankland Estate’s single vineyard Riesling portfolio is a nice crash course in Frankland River Riesling, itself subtly different from other sub-regional expressions such as that of Porongurup. I tasted all three 2012 releases at cellar door and took this one home for further examination. Grown on a strikingly chalky soil, this wine struck me as the most generous and fleshy, although this in the context of a collection of fairly austere wines.

The nose is quite expressive, though still with a bit of free sulfur, with pungent dried lime, sea spray, herbs and lemon juice notes. There’s a suggestion of something more tropical, and this edge gives the wine a fuller aroma profile than its siblings, but this thicker influence sits very much on the sidelines, more a faint imprint than something truly legible.

One expects a good dose of acid in these wines and I’m not disappointed here, though more important than quantity is character. The acid here isn’t ultra-fine; rather, it bubbles along close to the surface, pushing intense lime and herb flavours along the tongue briskly. There are savoury edges to the flavour profile, and I like the touch of mid-palate flesh that emerges before disappearing again in a cloud of torn herbs and firm texture, the latter less chalky and drying than in the other two wines.

More than anything, this is a delicious wine that, as I have discovered while tasting, pairs easily with food both savoury (green curry) and sweet (custard). I’ll have a few of these, thanks.

Frankland Estate
Price: $A27
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample

Crawford River Wines Young Vines Riesling 2011

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Yesterday I travelled through the Henty region and called on two producers, Crawford River Wines and Hochkirch. Henty is a mystery to me. Vast, remote, few wineries and even fewer cellar doors, it isn’t a region that invites visitors. Rather, it almost dares one to try and locate its styles, to make sense of the boundaries that define it. I’m not sure I know Henty any better after visiting, but amongst endless farmland, from vineyards that appear like a shock, I found some remarkable wines.

Crawford River Wines is arguably the region’s most famous producer (discounting Seppelt’s presence in the form of the Drumborg Vineyard). Although it produces some lovely red wines, this is a winery defined by its whites, and in particular its Riesling. The vines used for this label aren’t terribly young now (over ten years of age, if I recall) but it is still produced as a separate bottling. I was fortunate to be helped at cellar door by Belinda Thomson, who is surely one of the more self-possessed and enthusiastic young vignerons I’ve met.

A wine of contrasts, this suggests delicacy and finesse before presenting a fullness of fruit that comes as a surprise. The nose is pretty, edging towards flowers rather than juice, soft rather than etched. It’s expressive and generous, but always careful, never even hinting at vulgarity.

The palate carries through with soft, pastel fruit on entry, filling the mouth without heaviness, and moving through a shapely palate structure. Although I can sometimes enjoy a wine with a boisterous structure, this wine is underpinned by ultra-fine acid, firm yet texturally detailed and chalky through the finish. It retains the prettiness of form seen on the nose without sacrificing length, expressiveness or flavour.

There are plenty of great Rieslings in Australia, yet I can’t help but admire one more that, like its region and maker perhaps, is determinedly its own creation.

Crawford River Wines
Price: $A27
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Cellar door

Grosset Springvale Riesling 2010

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An inevitable companion to the Polish Hill. I’m having an easier time with this wine and, as I imagine it was on release, this is the more accessible, friendlier style.

Sometimes, I feel that we value difficulty in wine — if it’s a bit challenging, then it must be more sophisticated, more adult. This is far from a facile wine, but its approachability does beg the question: of two lovely Rieslings, which might be better, and why? Conventional wisdom often suggests the Polish Hill’s delicacy and finesse should win, and I have some sympathy for that view. But this is just plain fun to drink, while retaining the complexity and sophistication that rewards contemplative drinking. It’s just got more meat on its bones, and more swing in its backside. Not bad things.

The aroma’s thick, slightly juicy citrus character embrace hints of bottle age where the Polish Hill’s icy figure seemed to regard them with horror. This aroma is, if not luxurious, then at least harmonious: pulpy lemon and honey, micro herbs and sunlight soap. It’s just plain fun to smell, even though I’m even more excited to revisit it again in a few years’ time.

The palate structure is beautifully balanced – a clever interplay of chalky texture, fine acid and weighty fruit. These three sides take turns on top as the wine moves down the tongue, coating the mouth with intense flavour while freshening the palate at the same time. I like the savouriness of the after palate and finish very much; it’s quite herbal and grippy. So nice to see a Riesling that celebrates texture as much as pure fruit. My only criticism is a slight heaviness at the front of the mouth, as if the lusciousness of the fruit momentarily breaks out of the wine’s structure, only to be pulled right back again.

Delicious Riesling and yet another example — as if it were required — of our great way with this grape.

Grosset
Price: $35 (ish)
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2010

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I never tasted this on release, which is a shame. Pure laziness; I bought some fairly quickly, but it lay dormant in wine storage until recently. Working backwards from how it tastes now, I can imagine how it was as a newborn — powdery, angular, mineral. These sides of the wine are still very much in evidence, but age is making its contribution too. The result is, shall we say, transitional.

And a little odd, too. It’s easy to relax lazily into the idea that wine ought to, and always does, taste coherent in terms of its array of flavours. This goes with that goes with this; wine as a mid-priced women’s clothing store. This wine, though, shakes me out of my stupor, because its flavours clash and produce dissonance, tension, even ugliness. Uncompromising signs of youth bump up against prickly tertiary notes that want to be softer but aren’t capable of fullness, not yet.

The palate is where this wine’s future most clearly expresses itself. After the aggressive interplay of the aroma, the palate allows darts of sweet honey to weave in and out of what remains a bright, savoury, testy flavour profile. This promise of fullness softens the hardest edges and coats them in nectar, like golden syrup on ice. One eventually bites into the ice, of course, but the sweetness lingers and its promise is tantalising. The wine’s sophisticated, chalky texture provides appropriately adult support.

I’ll try this again in two or three years’ time.

Grosset
Price: $A40 (ish)
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Taylors Riesling 2008

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In the throes of Dookie madness at the moment, although I’m enjoying a quiet weekend in between residential sessions. I’m staying on campus over the weekend, and there’s only one other student here – the lovely Lyn Rochford from Viridian Wines in Tasmania. We’re working our way through a six-pack purchased at the surprisingly spacious Liquorland in Shepparton. Amongst the delights we obtained (at 30% off, no less) was this wine, a bin end.

Not a terribly glamorous life for the wine so far, then, but it has redeemed itself on opening. Considering its price, this is very satisfying. The aroma immediately shows aged notes of toast and spice alongside a core of primary lemon juice fruit. It’s not as finely delineated as some, but this is a very correct aroma profile that shows the wine in the early stages of development. The palate is aggressively structured and the acid remains somewhat formidable, despite a few years in bottle. I don’t mind a bright wine, though, so I’m going with this Riesling’s flow of lemon, honey and toast. There’s a tropical dimension to the flavour profile that thickens it, aided by what might be a bit of residual sugar. There is some pithy texture on the back palate that contributes a fresh twist.

Overall, this is still very young-tasting, and I’d be happy to let further bottles go for a few years yet. Very nice richer style that should keep improving.

Taylors
Price: $A15
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Louee Nullo Mountain Riesling 2011

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As good as they are, I often find myself seeking out expressions of Riesling that are different from our classic Clare and Eden Valley wines. Canberra and Henty are two regions that show distinctive styles in their own right, and I’m excited to think that yet more regions may have some surprises in store for us. While not to the same extent as with Chardonnay, local producers seem to be playing with Riesling style too, and it’s more common than it was a few years ago to see some wines with a bit of residual sugar, or more complex handling in the winery. I’m not sure I’ve found any such wines that I’d place above our long established benchmarks, but one ought to keep an open mind in such matters.

This wine comes from a site in Mudgee that sits 1100 metres above sea level. If Riesling likes cooler weather, then that sort of elevation is not a bad place to start. The nose suggests a good deal of austerity, with aromas that are fruity but with a good layer of chalk dust sprinkled on top. There’s an interesting contrast at work, as the fruit is quite full (think citrus flesh rather than pith) and the dryer notes quite prominent.

The palate allows this tension to play out. An apparent touch of residual sweetness plumps up fruit flavours, suggesting some tropicals alongside citrus juice. Running alongside are dashing streaks of acidity and equally prominent minerality. The structure of this wine is quite breathtaking in its severity, which would be fine except that it never quite reaches out to the lusciousness of the fruit, leaving the wine to flip-flop between fruit and acid then back again. This impression of a disconnect between two halves persists for most of the line, until the finish almost, but not quite, unifies the components in a sherbet flourish. I don’t think this is a fully achieved wine, but its angularity and genuine difference keep me coming back for another taste.

I’ve no idea how this will age, but it might be worth chucking a couple in the cellar for interests’ sake.

Lowe Wines
Price: $A25
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2011

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A lot passes through my mind as I sit down to this wine tonight. My palate — indeed my whole being — is in need of significant refreshment, and Riesling is the grape I most often reach for at these times. It may seem flippant to open what is arguably Australia’s most prominent example of the varietal on such a weeknight, but quality refreshes as much as character, and I’m hoping this has plenty of both.

The nose is firmly pretty, completely untouched by marks of age, either premature or well-earned. It brings to mind nothing so much as the fragrance of early spring, flowers not yet fully ripened, mixing their adult fragrance with the vegetal crispness of unfolding leaves. Which is to say, this still tastes shocking young, illicitly so, though its profile already hints at the chiselled physique of adulthood. There’s little flesh here; notes exist in a powdery, minerally spectrum.

The palate is most striking for its intense cut and thrust. It sizzles on entry and a strong acid line really dominates the experience of this wine right now. Falling off this acidic freight train are a range of detailed, etched flavours, encompassing lemon juice and slate via an almost musk-like note. I can tell there’s great order and rigour to the arrangement of each component, but it’s hard to tear one’s self away from that thrilling, firm structure. Flavour, right now, is simply a well constructed accompaniment, worthy of admiration but playing the role of textural harmonic to the acid’s melodic line. When it settles a bit, whether that’s in five, ten, or more years, I’m confident this will sing with complex, adult flavours.

I’m feeling better already.

Grosset
Price: $A42
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Grosset Springvale Riesling 2011

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It was remiss of me not to review the 2010 Grossets, though I did purchase some as usual. I’ll remedy that soon. For now, I’m tasting the newer wines, starting with this Watervale-sourced number.

In some years, this wine can be explosively aromatic (see, for example, the 2008). 2011 isn’t such a year, though it’s far from reticent. No, this remains an expressive aroma, but its apparent restraint comes from the particular notes to which it tends. Rather than gobs of citrus juice and flowers, this presents citrus rind, talc and herbs. Still relatively full in profile, it shows good presence and immediacy, without perhaps the etched detail one sometimes sees in this style. Very much a chiselled profile, though, and somewhat more intellectual than usual for this label.

The palate totally reinforces these impressions through alignment of flavour and sympathy of structure. The citrus element comes across more strongly here, and there’s a strong run of lemon juice on the middle palate. The dominant notes are, though, more minerally; talc and flint are the best analogues I can muster. The structure is lovely and contributes to the powerdery impression given by the flavours. Acid is firm and textured, drying the after palate in particular. It’s very moreish and pleasingly angular.

Given the peculiar vintage conditions, this is something of a surprise and is certainly a very fine wine.

Grosset Wines
Price: $A35
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Retail

Clonakilla Riesling 2002

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The observant amongst you will have realised that I’ve been tasting a fair few wines from my cellar of late. I retrieved four dozen wines a few weeks ago, mostly things that are either not worth cellaring or that are due to be retasted. As an aside, I do love getting wine out of storage. There’s a whole ritual to it: browsing my little collection, constructing a cart, waiting for the delivery to arrive. Good friends have told me I need to get out more.

I last tasted this in 2008 and found it interesting but somewhat incoherent, as if going through an unfortunate stage in its development. The bottle I’m tasting tonight, by contrast, is quite well developed, expressing what seems to be the full extent of its potential as an aged wine. I was a little worried on pulling the cork, as I’ve seen stoppers in better condition, but the nose doesn’t seem excessively oxidised or otherwise compromised. It does, however, show a wide range of aromas, from honey and grilled nuts to biscuit and a bit of lemon curd. A small kerosene note quickly blows off, leaving the residual aroma clean and correct.

The palate really shows how developed this wine is. At its core, a thrust of full throttle tertiary sweetness runs right down the line, colouring the entire flavour profile with fullness and attack. There’s a multitude of other notes, most centred on nuts, butter and sweet lemon curd components. Acid remains a tad coarse, something this wine may never escape, but the structure is well integrated and supportive of the wine’s flow, while being prominent enough to keep the whole fresh and lively.

This, for me, is drinking at an ideal point as far as aged Riesling is concerned. It is showing a full spectrum of aged notes while retaining a firmness of structure and significant primary fruit. Maximum complexity, good bones, lots going on. If this bottle is representative, I’d say this wine is right in the zone.

Clonakilla
Price: $A25
Closure: Cork
Source: Retail

Louee Nullo Mountain Riesling 2010

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Yesterday’s Pinot Grigio underwhelmed me, and I wondered at the time whether it was my general lack of enthusiasm for the style as much as the wine itself. On the tasting bench tonight, I have a wine from the same vintage and producer, but made from a grape for which I have much more affection: Riesling. Let’s see how we go.

The nose is subtle, with prickly wisps of lemon rind, minerality and edges of candied peel. It brings to mind watercolour and pastel shades, which is pretty I suppose but also a bit wishy-washy. I want more here: some impact or at least a twisted sense of humour. Some air and a warmer serving temperature help it to show to better advantage. As it warms, there’s greater volume and an emerging thickness to the aroma that you may or may not like.

he palate is altogether more satisfying. Entry is tingly with sherbet-like acid and some straightforward lemon juice flavour. This lemon juice is the most prominent flavour component right along the line, though it’s joined through the middle palate by savoury minerals and higher toned florals. I find the flavour profile a bit clumsy and straightforward, particularly for a wine style where delicacy and finesse are often highly valued. The acid is also a bit tiring after a few mouthfuls. However, it has impact and decent intensity. After palate and finish show good persistence.

>Another mixed bag here. Neither Louee wine tasted has nailed the style sought, but both are cleanly made, so perhaps a bit more experimentation is in order.

Lowe Wines
Price: $A25
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample