Rockcliffe 2016 Single Site Riesling

94 points | James Halliday, Wine Companion

This Rockcliffe flagship Riesling has a brilliant pale straw colour, vibrant citrus blossom, lemon zest and subtle flintiness aromas and a palate that comprises a balanced structure of limes, green apple and a crisp, mineral backbone that lingers in the finish.

 A standout grape variety for 2016 vintage in the Great Southern, the Riesling enjoyed a hot spring for an early budburst, followed by January rain and cold nights that slowed growth for a good flavour intensity and great length. 

WINEMAKING

Riesling fruit is very fragile and its potential to extract phenolics makes it a challenge to handle. A key aim of the winemaking process is to preserve the very delicate flavours and aromas of this variety. The fruit was handpicked to avoid maceration (phenolics) and whole bunch pressed for the same reason. The juice was then cold settled, racked and left to ferment with a neutral yeast strain at a temperature of 15°C. Once fermentation was complete the wine is fined and bottled.

FOOD PAIRING

Will be complimented by dishes that have a fleshy texture and low acidity with simple clean flavours. Oysters or mussels are a great pairing.

VINTAGE NOTES

2016 was a mild summer after a hot spring allowing early budburst and then veraison for all varieties. Rain in January slowed everything down and the cold nights gave good flavour intensity. Riesling and Chardonnay were the stand out varietals with great length of flavour. Pinot Noir struggled with the cool rain events and ripening flavour development. Shiraz from the warmer Frankland region are showing promising character development.