Wine Lists

Gold-medal-wines

By Halliday Promotion

2 days ago

Riesling is one of the most popular white wine varieties among Australian oenophiles, and it's not hard to see why. Far from the confected, overly sweet styles of old, the rieslings grown on Australian soil today are often fresh and always versatile, with the ability to pair with a wide range of foods, and age for years or even decades. 

The white grape can produce wines in a range of styles, from dry, off-dry and slightly sweeter, right through to late-picked and botrytis-affected dessert wines. Within that scale, the tasting characteristics might be zippy, with notes of lemon and lime, rich flavours of peach, apricot and pineapple, or contain more complex flavours of toast, nuts and honey. It's also not uncommon to taste spice, slate and blossom.

Below, you'll find six expressions of riesling, each grown in different regions across the country. From Victoria's Grampians region and Tasmania's Coal River Valley, to South Australia's Clare and Eden Valleys, these wines are perfect for pairing with fresh seafood and enjoying in great company.

Ada bottleshot 

2023 Ada Wine Co. Gigi Whites Valley Vineyard Grenache 2023 McLaren Vale

Pale in the glass with a faint haze. There’s a serene charm to this, a meshing of spice and savoury drive into the pristine fruit flavours, in a mid-sized frame. It has an Italianate quality, with the fleshy suppleness of variety welling beneath, fine but resolute pumice-like tannins the conveyance. Dried cranberry, sour cherry, warm terracotta, caraway, orange peel, pressed flowers. It’s a thoroughly modern grenache, and quite a delight. – Marcus Ellis, 95 points, Halliday Wine Companion.

Winemaker James Ellis says: The wine has incredible vibrancy and a real “drinkability” factor thanks to a long 90 day maceration on skins in the winery. Everything is in perfect harmony, acid, alcohol and tannin it’s all there working in unison.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
JE. McLaren Vale is such a beautiful and vibrant region with warm days full of sun and surf and cool nights spent around the fire. This wine typifies the region, put it in the fridge for a slight chill on a warm day, or enjoy it at room temperature on a cool night and it will warm you up sufficiently.

Best enjoyed: Serve it in nice big glass to open the wine up and enjoy it with friends and family. Yum Cha on a Sunday, you can’t beat it.

RRP $37 | Drink to 2030 | adawineco.com.au | Shop this wine

Briar Ridge bottleshot 

Briar Ridge

XXX

Winemaker XX says: XX

H. How does your region influence the wine?
XX. XX

Best enjoyed: XX

RRP $XX | Drink to XXXX | XX | Shop this wine

Brown Brothers cabernet

2021 Brown Brothers Patricia Cabernet Sauvignon

The Patricia Cabernet Sauvignon is an inky dark purple colour with rich aromas of blackcurrant and dried herbs, while the French oak influence offers a gentle ‘cigar box lift’ to the nose. On the palate the wine has powerful dark berry fruit, spice and hints of nutmeg driven by a warm vintage. It has persistent length and is well structured with ripe flavours and a seamless elegant finish. The Patricia Cabernet Sauvignon has already received two years bottle age to soften and integrate its characters and will continue to improve over the next 6-8 years in the cellar.

Winemaker Simon McMillian says: 2021 was an excellent year for Cabernet Sauvignon in Victoria, with close to average temperatures for the growing season, without excessive heat or rain events, providing optimal conditions for fruit maturity. 2021 was the first Patricia Cabernet Sauvignon that I’ve worked on from start to finish, so I’ll definitely be putting a few boxes in the cellar at home.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
SM. 2We work with small parcels of fruit from across Victoria to make the best Cabernet Sauvignon possible. Each region provides unique characteristics to the blend: King Valley (blue fruits and distinct Cabernet tannins); Bendigo (dark berry fruits and structure); Yarra Valley; varietal leafiness and elegance.

Best enjoyed: I like to keep Patricia Cabernet in a wine fridge at home so it’s always opened at the right temperature, serving in nice large stemware, like Riedel Vinum Cabernet Sauvignon. The ultimate food pairing for Patricia Cabernet is slow roasted lamb shoulder, with plenty of garlic, rosemary and oregano.

RRP $XX | Drink to XXXX | XXX | Shop this wine

Brown Brothers Noble Riesling

2022 Brown Brothers Patricia Noble Riesling

The 2022 Noble Riesling has a bright, rich golden yellow colour. The nose has fresh lifted aromatics and classic botrytis characters of orange marmalade, citrus and honey. These aromas flow through to the palate which is concentrated and complex with a silky mouth feel. The high natural acidity balances the residual sweetness to provide a refreshingly clean finish. While we hold this wine for 3 years before releasing it to the market, it will continue to develop over the next 5 to 8 years.

Winemaker Tom Canning says: Making Noble can be very challenging. Dealing with the climatic conditions to get the ball rolling in relation to the Botrytis infection, then waiting for the exact right picking time, fermenting the wine in stages to get the best characters to shine through. But in the end all this stress is worth it as a beautifully complex wine awaits you at the end.
In tasting this wine, I love the beautiful marmalaid, honey and citrus characters that form the complex flavour palate and then the salivating acid that cuts through and the end.

A also love how over time in the bottle this wine will gain more complexity and start to darken in colour.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
TC. The wine is a single vineyard wine from our home her at Milawa in the base of the King Valley. The beautifully warm summer/early autumn days help get the Riesling nice and ripe then as the nights cool and we get some dew forming the botrytis infection begins to occur. As the days stay warm and dry the botrytis can infect the fruit over enough time to give the correct sugar/flavour/acid levels in the grapes.

Best enjoyed: I like to serve the wine chilled after a meal with either dessert or a cheese platter. This wine is a classic “dinner party” wine. It cleanses the palate after the heavier dry wines and always creates great conversations around the table. For the cheese platter it would pair really well with any blue cheese or with a dessert I like to have it with passion fruit meringue or orange syrup cake with cream.

RRP $XX | Drink to XXXX | XXX | Shop this wine

Clonakilla bottleshot

2023 Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier

The flagship is in fine form from this cool vintage, rendering it elegant and quite exotic. Plus, 22% whole bunches in the ferment make an impact. It’s a touch sappy yet laden with heady aromatics – all florals with a dusting of Middle Eastern spices such as sumac. Super peppery. The mid-weighted palate is tight and a touch lean with red fruit accents, bright acidity and fine if plentiful tannins. It’s a wine you keep coming back to as it reveals more and differently. It's lovely and enticing; it feels light and ethereal, deceptive. Time will reward the patient as this builds more complexity, but it is seriously hard to resist now. – Jane Faulkner

Chief winemaker Tim Kirk says: You really have to smell this wine to believe the intensity and purity of fruit we received in the 2023 Shiraz Viognier. As Clonakilla SV goes, this vintage strikes us as archetypal, style-defining, the essence of cool-climate Shiraz. It is certainly beautiful; aromatically thrilling with a classically luminous, elegant palate.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
TK. We celebrate our warm summer days, cool nights, gentle slopes, refreshing evening breezes, complex red brown clays and decomposed granitic subsoil. Our extended ripening season leads to the development of striking, complex aromas, crisp natural acidity, and super fine tannins.

Best enjoyed: Best served in a large Burgundy Glass to bring out the aromatics. With duck.

RRP $130 | Drink to 2040 | clonakilla.com.au | Shop this wine

 

Colmar

Pale straw with a flash of green and fruit aromas of lemon, lime, grapefruit and green apple. Hints of apple turnover, crushed stone, citrus blossom, jasmine and sea spray. Focused and pure with a wonderful sense of tension and light grapefruit pith texture sailing long on the exit with a distinct, minerally cadence. – Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion, 94 points.

Winemaker Bec Duffy says: I love the purity of riesling, and the fact that it is both precise and complex at the same time. Riesling is a viticulturist's wine and, as long as they have done their job, all I need to do as a winemaker is capture the freshness, aromatics and elegance, and really let the fruit shine. Sometimes the simplest of things can be the most difficult to achieve, so it’s always a rewarding challenge making riesling.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
BD. This riesling has great potential for ageing, and our vineyard has a strong track record of producing riesling that ages well. We have museum stock of riesling going back over 20 years and it never ceases to amaze me how fresh and vibrant these wines still look.

Best enjoyed: I prefer to drink riesling at around 6–8°C, which allows for the aromatics to shine and for the palate to be slightly weightier. I like to use the RIEDEL Riesling glass and serve with some Tasmanian striped trumpeter that has been pan-fried with some butter and lemon. Simple, fresh, tasty and a great match for our riesling.

RRP $32 | Drink to 2039 | holmoakvineyards.com.au | Shop this wine

 Flowstone bottleshot

2022 Flowstone Queen of the Earth Sauvignon Blanc

A powerhouse of a wine and regularly one of the best SBs from Margaret River. It’s complex with juicy acidity matched to a textural palate, lots of stone fruit and citrus, a touch of feijoa and freshly cut herbs plus some smoky sulphides. The palate feels tight yet there’s a succulence throughout and it opens revealing expansive flavour. An excellent drink with or without food. 96 points. Jane Faulkner

Winemakers Stuart Pym and Janice McDonald say: My passion for serious and sophisticated Sauvignon Blanc has driven me to make stunning wines like this. From a vineyard we lease, and hence manage, in Karridale, the coolest part of Margaret River, comes the stunning grapes used for this wine. After 18 months in a single demi muid (600 litre barrel), this wine is bottled, and then held back for another year before being released. It is a serious commitment to show just what Sauvignon Blanc can be.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
SP & JM. Margaret River does have a lovely climate for growing grapes. Good rainfall, at the right time, and lots of warm sunshine during the ripening and harvest period. The vineyard for this wine is in the coolest part of the region, which does add an element of restraint, while still showing that classic Margaret River focus.

Best enjoyed: Slightly chilled, and in a special Sauvignon Blanc glass. Best on a warm afternoon, or the early part of a meal…or both. Salmon gravlax with a Dijon crème fraiche dressing, or plain and simple pan fried scallops!!!

RRP $63 | Drink to 2035 | flowstonewines.com | Shop this wine

 

Logan

Pale gold colour, lemon/lime and tropical fruits on the nose. Mineral texture with lemon sherbet acidity creates a well-rounded mouthfeel.

Winemakers Samantha Connew and Luke Andree say: We love how the two exceptional elements of this wine come together. The rich soil enhances the wine’s freshness and minerality, while the wild ferment in oak adds richness, depth and a smooth texture. The result is a well-balanced riesling with both vibrancy and complexity, showcasing the best of both the terroir and winemaking techniques.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
SC & LA. Like most high-quality rieslings, our Texture Riesling can age well due to its natural acidity and balance of fruit and sweetness. It will be great from five to 15 years if stored properly.

Best enjoyed: We serve our Texture Riesling in The Gabriel Wine Glass; it is ideal because its shape enhances the wine's aromatic qualities. The design allows the wine to breathe, highlighting its fruit-forward notes and balancing its sweetness with its acidity. The bright citrus flavours, rounded acidity and subtle sweetness complement the delicate flavours of our world-class Tasmanian seafood. The acidity cuts through rich seafood, while the wine's fruit-forward notes enhance freshness, creating a harmonious balance with both light and rich seafood dishes.

RRP $65 | Drink to 2040 | pressingmatters.com.au | Shop this wine

 Loam bottleshot

2023 Paul Nelson LOAM Chardonnay

When we talk about world-stage aspirations for Australian chardonnay, perhaps our initial pin on the map isn’t Denmark, but this wine fits the bill and then some. Sourced from a mere 300 vines off the Karriview Vineyard in Scotsdale, the wine underwent 100% malo and is unfiltered and unfined. Just one barrel was made. Freshly baked bread, white peach, nutmeg, grilled stone fruit, nothing linear here, rather a reverberation of sensory delight, honeyed pear, clotted cream and schist. Power, pools of depth. Lime zest. Repeat. Tensile and precise yet effortless, oyster shell and brine, the beginning and the end hard to finalise, such is the gravitas of balance. An inaugural release under the LOAM banner, and a wine I won’t easily forget. – Katrina Butler

Winemaker Paul Nelson says: This wine reflects the beautiful diversity of our Karriview vineyard in Denmark, Western Australia. It showcases the evolution of our site and its ability to produce a wine that is comparable to come of the best examples of Chardonnay in Australia.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
PN. Our vineyard is situated in the coastal Great Southern town of Denmark, in the GI of the Scotsdale Valley. Our unique clos benefits from its southerly location, tempered by the icy waters of the Southern Ocean (5km’s away). The soils of the Scotsdale Valley are dominated by fertile Karri-Loams substrates. Rich in nutrients and minerals, these soils drive vine vigour and impart the hallmark intensity seen in only the best appellations around the world. You could argue that our region is one of the few in Australia to be benefiting from more favourable wine growing conditions due to the changing climate. In this bottle you can taste the power and finessed of the Scotsdale Valley.

Best enjoyed: Serve the wine no colder than 14 degrees to allow its complex aromas to fully reveal themselves. Chilled, natural oysters from the Great Southern seaside town of Albany.

RRP $250 | Drink to 2038 | paulnelsonwines.com.au | Shop this wine

 

Robert Oatley

Eden Valley riesling made by Ian Hongell for Grant Dickson at Otherness. Light straw with aromas of lime juice, Bickford's cordial and green apple. Hints of citrus blossom, jasmine, crushed stone, drying hay and lemongrass. Sleek and vivid, it's like a lime laser with its tubular palate shape, finishing stony-pure with a suggestion of umami. – Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion, 94 points.

Otherness says: I love riesling's aromatic restraint, its ability to express vintage and place, and the way it captures the moment the grapes were picked. Although I get excited by the driving acidity of rieslings in their youth, I marvel at the transformation that comes after about five years of bottle age, the harmony they exhibit after the sharp corners are rubbed off and the first encroachment of tertiary complexity deepens and softens the flavour profile.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
O. The 2020 Skuld thrills me in its current stage of development. Fresh Meyer lemon and grapefruit still dominate the palate, the white florals have receded, but the curd, lanolin, and other toasty tertiary flavours are yet to fully assert themselves. The wine is so delicious right now, but will easily hold and evolve glacially for the next decade and more.

Best enjoyed: Young rieslings are best enjoyed chilled in a varietal-specific riesling glass but, as they age, soften and fill out, I prefer them at 12–15°C in a wider glass. It’s a cliché, but rieslings of any age pair so well with fresh oysters. In the Otherness restaurant we love serving our rieslings with Gazander oysters from Little Douglas Bay in the Coffin Bay precinct.

RRP $50 | Drink to 2035 | otherness.com.au | Shop this wine

 

2023 Tyrrell's Wines Estate Grown Shiraz

This classy Tyrrell's shiraz will bowl you over with its fragrance, brightness and length of flavour. The quality of the fruit is undeniable, being sourced from the Tyrrell's Black Ridge, Weinkeller and Baulkham vineyards, the latter planted in the '60s. A chiffon-like layer of fragrant oak drapes over the gorgeous fruit, adding nutty interest and intrigue. This is a serious wine with impressive layers and vitality, offering subtle richness and juiciness at the front and satisfying succulence on the close. – Toni Paterson, 96 points, Halliday Wine Companion

CEO Chris Tyrrell says: This wine is the epitome of our Tyrrell’s house style shiraz, it is textbook Hunter Valley, and it is from one of the best vintages in recent memory.

H. How does your region influence the wine?
CT. Sourced from three key vineyards within the Tyrrell estate; Short Flat planted in 1968, Weinkeller planted in 1970 and NVC planted in 1996, average vine age of over 50 years. All vineyards planted on iconic red dirt (red clay over limestone) unique to the ridgeline within the Tyrrell family estate.
Traditional hand winemaking techniques are used; whole berry fermentation, gentle extraction, enhancing brightness and fruit purity. Matured in older large format French oak casks (2700L), this oak selection is a signature of Tyrrell’s red winemaking, enabling the fruit characteristics to be primary feature of the wine.
The resulting wine is a modern interpretation of the Hunter River Burgundies made famous in the 1960s. Medium bodied, fruit-driven with pure and bright acidity, soft, savoury tannins with minimal oak character.

Best enjoyed: Serve at 15 degrees in a shiraz-specific varietal wine glass. A charcuterie and cheese plate.

RRP $40 | Drink to 2028 | tyrrells.com.au | Shop this wine

 

Top image credit: HATCH

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