TN: AFWAC - Rieslings of Western Australia 27/4/15
Posted: Fri May 15, 2015 3:04 pm
Last month the Adelaide Fine Wine Appreciation Club (AFWAC) had a look at a number of rieslings from Western Australia, including a mini-vertical of Leeuwin Estate Art Series and a horizontal of the single vineyard wines of Frankland Estate. All of the wines as usual were presented in the club's XL5 tasting glasses.
AFWAC meets the last Monday of every month, and anyone in Adelaide who's interested in joining and/or attending can contact the club at afwac365@gmail.com or check out the club's facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AdelaideFineWi ... iationClub
FLIGHT 1: GREAT SOUTHERN
2014 Castle Rock Estate Porongurup Riesling, Great Southern (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale green/straw. Some obvious sulphur here on the nose, cheesy and grassy with lemon and bacon fat; the juicy palate opens with a bang of sweet lime juice and good creamy acidity, followed by some banana creme and honey, unfortunately finishing slightly bitter. A decent starter.
2013 Plantagenet Riesling, Great Southern (screwcap): 12.3% alc. Very pale straw/green. Quite grassy nose, very pure with fennel, lime juice and mineral water; a subtle entry is followed by a slow-building palate full of lemon/lime and mineral, finishing grassy and a little lean. This had a lot of good things going for it, but that finish wasn't quite up there with the better wines tonight; it was a very high standard.
2013 Howard Park Riesling, Great Southern (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Tight, minerally nose with delicate scents of juicyfruit gum/orange blossom, but in contrast the palate is powerful and loose-knit; the entry is impressive, the mid-palate is simply huge, crammed full of apple and crunchy acidity, finishing long, juicy and tingly. The highlight of the tasting on my scoresheet, it got my WOTN vote.
FLIGHT 2: FRANKLAND ESTATE HORIZONTAL
2013 Frankland Estate Rocky Gully Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 11.5% alc. Very pale straw/green. Waxy and closed at first with little whiffs of lemon, becoming grassier with breathing, followed by an amazing shift to kerosene/turpine characters. A spicy/tingly entry leads to a palate full of lemon and lime, the acidity pleasantly crunchy finishing mouthwateringly dry, although with breathing there's some kerosene/turpentine here too. It was a perfect match for oysters on the night, although I am a little concerned it may be a quick developer.
2013 Frankland Estate Isolation Ridge Vineyard Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 11.6% alc. Very pale straw/green. More perfumed than the Rocky Gully, with brown lime, talcum powder/bathroom scents and delicate lime fruit; a soft entry leads to a spicy, powerful palate with crunchy apples and some touches of toast, finishing slender but long. A lovely wine and very popular, as reflected in the group WOTN votes.
2013 Frankland Estate Netley Road Vineyard Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 12.3% alc. Very pale straw/green. Perfumed like the Isolation Ridge with more bathroom scents/talc, more lime though and toasty characters, a hint of kerosene already; the palate's notably different, full of brown lime and kerosene, the acidity bright mid-palate but becoming harsh and teeth-scraping on the finish.
2013 Frankland Estate Poison Hill Vineyard Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 10.8% alc. Very pale straw/green. Very different to the other Frankland Estate Rieslings, a little Gewurztraminer-like with holy water/rose petal and bath salt characters; a soft entry leads to a spicy palate full of brown lime, apple and bluegum honey, a little toast and kerosene, finishing very long and soft. A very convincing, sweeter style of Australian Riesling, this was my favourite of the Frankland Estate bracket and second favourite wine of the evening.
FLIGHT 3: LEEUWIN ESTATE ART SERIES VERTICAL
2013 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Very grassy and lemony nose, at times almost Semillon-like, becoming spicy, more apple with breathing; the palate's spicy and a little yeasty with apple cider characters and crunchy acidity, a little kerosene creeping in on the long finish. It’s balance and power is impressive, but I get the feeling this may develop quickly.
2008 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Surprisingly toasty already, still grassy though with strong lemon and fresh magazine print characters, again more than a little Semillon-like; the palate is dominated by hard acidity, well in front of the fruit up to the toasty finish. I found this was too much of a mouthful with all that acid, and I'm not sure it will ever come into balance.
2007 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Heavy sulphur characters on the nose and palate, it's cheesy with diesel and bacon fat characters, but it is also rather tight and reserved; that said, the palate structure is very good and the finish is full of soft, sweet apple. At the moment it's clearly reductive, its best hope is time and/or a good breathing to try and blow off those stinky characters, otherwise I'd call it faulty.
2006 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Beautifully perfumed nose at first full of bathroom scents, talcum powder, 4711 Eau de Cologne, apple, and ground spices, just a little kerosene in the background, although with breathing I also picked up a disturbing mousy character. I found the spicy palate rather slender, the crunchy apple/lime characters not quite matching the intensity of the acidity, the overall effect just too harsh. Despite my concerns this gathered enough votes to be the group WOTN.
2005 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Just like some of the earlier wines in the LEAS vertical, despite the youthful colour the nose shows heavily aged characters, it's basically kerosene city with a little apple and struck match way off in the distance. The palate's spicy, lean/tight and slightly oily in texture, it's also complex with apple, talc, kerosene and turpine characters and a sweet/toasty apple finish. Another puzzling wine, it's youthful colour contradicts something that seems to be either in a flat spot or quite developed; it was however, a great match for the oysters on offer.
The overall group votes for Wine Of The Night:
1st - 5 votes: 2006 Leeuwin Estate Art Series
2nd - 3 votes: 2013 Frankland Estate Isolation Ridge
= 3rd - 2 votes: 2008 Leeuwin Estate Art Series
= 3rd - 2 votes: 2013 Frankland Estate Poison Hill Vineyard
= 4th - 1 vote: 2007 Leeuwin Estate Art Series
= 4th - 1 vote: 2013 Howard Park
Cheers,
Ian
AFWAC meets the last Monday of every month, and anyone in Adelaide who's interested in joining and/or attending can contact the club at afwac365@gmail.com or check out the club's facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AdelaideFineWi ... iationClub
FLIGHT 1: GREAT SOUTHERN
2014 Castle Rock Estate Porongurup Riesling, Great Southern (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale green/straw. Some obvious sulphur here on the nose, cheesy and grassy with lemon and bacon fat; the juicy palate opens with a bang of sweet lime juice and good creamy acidity, followed by some banana creme and honey, unfortunately finishing slightly bitter. A decent starter.
2013 Plantagenet Riesling, Great Southern (screwcap): 12.3% alc. Very pale straw/green. Quite grassy nose, very pure with fennel, lime juice and mineral water; a subtle entry is followed by a slow-building palate full of lemon/lime and mineral, finishing grassy and a little lean. This had a lot of good things going for it, but that finish wasn't quite up there with the better wines tonight; it was a very high standard.
2013 Howard Park Riesling, Great Southern (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Tight, minerally nose with delicate scents of juicyfruit gum/orange blossom, but in contrast the palate is powerful and loose-knit; the entry is impressive, the mid-palate is simply huge, crammed full of apple and crunchy acidity, finishing long, juicy and tingly. The highlight of the tasting on my scoresheet, it got my WOTN vote.
FLIGHT 2: FRANKLAND ESTATE HORIZONTAL
2013 Frankland Estate Rocky Gully Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 11.5% alc. Very pale straw/green. Waxy and closed at first with little whiffs of lemon, becoming grassier with breathing, followed by an amazing shift to kerosene/turpine characters. A spicy/tingly entry leads to a palate full of lemon and lime, the acidity pleasantly crunchy finishing mouthwateringly dry, although with breathing there's some kerosene/turpentine here too. It was a perfect match for oysters on the night, although I am a little concerned it may be a quick developer.
2013 Frankland Estate Isolation Ridge Vineyard Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 11.6% alc. Very pale straw/green. More perfumed than the Rocky Gully, with brown lime, talcum powder/bathroom scents and delicate lime fruit; a soft entry leads to a spicy, powerful palate with crunchy apples and some touches of toast, finishing slender but long. A lovely wine and very popular, as reflected in the group WOTN votes.
2013 Frankland Estate Netley Road Vineyard Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 12.3% alc. Very pale straw/green. Perfumed like the Isolation Ridge with more bathroom scents/talc, more lime though and toasty characters, a hint of kerosene already; the palate's notably different, full of brown lime and kerosene, the acidity bright mid-palate but becoming harsh and teeth-scraping on the finish.
2013 Frankland Estate Poison Hill Vineyard Riesling, Frankland River (screwcap): 10.8% alc. Very pale straw/green. Very different to the other Frankland Estate Rieslings, a little Gewurztraminer-like with holy water/rose petal and bath salt characters; a soft entry leads to a spicy palate full of brown lime, apple and bluegum honey, a little toast and kerosene, finishing very long and soft. A very convincing, sweeter style of Australian Riesling, this was my favourite of the Frankland Estate bracket and second favourite wine of the evening.
FLIGHT 3: LEEUWIN ESTATE ART SERIES VERTICAL
2013 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Very grassy and lemony nose, at times almost Semillon-like, becoming spicy, more apple with breathing; the palate's spicy and a little yeasty with apple cider characters and crunchy acidity, a little kerosene creeping in on the long finish. It’s balance and power is impressive, but I get the feeling this may develop quickly.
2008 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Surprisingly toasty already, still grassy though with strong lemon and fresh magazine print characters, again more than a little Semillon-like; the palate is dominated by hard acidity, well in front of the fruit up to the toasty finish. I found this was too much of a mouthful with all that acid, and I'm not sure it will ever come into balance.
2007 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Heavy sulphur characters on the nose and palate, it's cheesy with diesel and bacon fat characters, but it is also rather tight and reserved; that said, the palate structure is very good and the finish is full of soft, sweet apple. At the moment it's clearly reductive, its best hope is time and/or a good breathing to try and blow off those stinky characters, otherwise I'd call it faulty.
2006 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Beautifully perfumed nose at first full of bathroom scents, talcum powder, 4711 Eau de Cologne, apple, and ground spices, just a little kerosene in the background, although with breathing I also picked up a disturbing mousy character. I found the spicy palate rather slender, the crunchy apple/lime characters not quite matching the intensity of the acidity, the overall effect just too harsh. Despite my concerns this gathered enough votes to be the group WOTN.
2005 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling, Margaret River (screwcap): 12% alc. Very pale straw/green. Just like some of the earlier wines in the LEAS vertical, despite the youthful colour the nose shows heavily aged characters, it's basically kerosene city with a little apple and struck match way off in the distance. The palate's spicy, lean/tight and slightly oily in texture, it's also complex with apple, talc, kerosene and turpine characters and a sweet/toasty apple finish. Another puzzling wine, it's youthful colour contradicts something that seems to be either in a flat spot or quite developed; it was however, a great match for the oysters on offer.
The overall group votes for Wine Of The Night:
1st - 5 votes: 2006 Leeuwin Estate Art Series
2nd - 3 votes: 2013 Frankland Estate Isolation Ridge
= 3rd - 2 votes: 2008 Leeuwin Estate Art Series
= 3rd - 2 votes: 2013 Frankland Estate Poison Hill Vineyard
= 4th - 1 vote: 2007 Leeuwin Estate Art Series
= 4th - 1 vote: 2013 Howard Park
Cheers,
Ian
