Deal - Remarkable Rieslings

We all know that Germany is the birthplace of Riesling, but in recent times the iconic grape has thrived wonderfully in Australia, an Old World antipode destination. German settlers brought the grape with them in 1840, however it’s popularity got massively overshadowed by Chardonnay. In fact as explained by Jamie Goode of the Wine Anorak, Australia has the second largest area of Riesling planted, after Germany. In 1988 Australia harvested 30 000 tons of Riesling and 20 000 tons of Chardonnay. Today, 50 000 tons of Riesling are harvested each year, so it is still an important variety, although this is dwarfed by the 400 000 or so tonnes of Chardonnay processed.

Today, however demand for Australian Riesling is outweighing supply, with the best examples coming from South Australia, specifically in Eden and Clare Valley.

Goode explains that the Eden is cooler than the Clare and so more acids are retained in the grapes, and it can have a greater fruit vibrancy, although not in the mid-palate. Clare has more lime and citrus, while the Eden Valley tends to have more floral (rose petal) notes.

Grossett explained that the Clare isn’t as warm as people think it is, and that there’s actually a big variation in temperatures across the region. The meteorology station is in the wrong place: in the main street in Clare behind the post office. ‘Be a little wary about climatic data,’ warns Grossett. ‘The vine is the best indicator.’

Eden Valley has a slightly cooler climate than the Clare. Interestingly, the acidity seems to behave differently. At the stage where winegrowers start to analyse fruit for harvest, Eden fruit has higher acidity, but this then drops faster than the acidity in the Clare. Typically, harvest will be slightly later in the Eden Valley. Eden shows lemon rather than lime quality in many cases, and sometimes has a chalky character.

The most distinctive difference between German and Australian Rieslings tend to be that Australians are drier; this renders them as being more flexible in terms of food matching. Often Australian Rieslings are made to be drunk younger than their German counterparts. Whilst some of them will evolve to express aromas and flavours of the sometimes loved, sometimes loathed kerosene and petrol descriptor, connected more with Old World Rieslings.

There is no doubt that Australia have truly cracked the art of producing fine Rieslings, and really these wines should be appreciated for what they are, a distinct genre in relation to their Old World counterparts. They are complex, often age worthy wines and this selection includes some of the very best that the country has to offer.

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