What happened to the Big Guns?
When I looked at the list of wines, I wondered why so many big names were missing: Grosset, Petaluma, Pike’s Traditionale, Paullett, Pewsey Vale, Wilson, Mitchell, Plantagenet, Larry Cherubino and Leeuwin Estate come to mind. Nick Bullied writes that they limited the number of wines to 70, but only some 30 are reviewed. The list stops at 90 points (see copy of the full list below) – does that mean the rest didn’t make the cut? Hard to believe.
The Hidden List
Leafing through the mag, I discovered some of the missing Rieslings in the New Releases section. It felt a bit like stumbling into a parallel universe, but it was a worthwhile stumble. Here’s why:
Jim Barry Lodge Hill Riesling 2013 – $18 at Winestar . 95 points
Leeuwin Estate Art Series Riesling 2013 – $19 at Dan M’s. 95 points
Clonikilla Riesling 2013 – $27 at MyCellars. 95 points
Ravensworth Riesling 2013 – NLA. 95 points. This wine is part of the line-up below, where it gets 91. Big difference.
Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2013– $45 at Winestar. 94 points
Grosset Springvale Riesling 2013 – $36 at Winestar. 94 points
Wilson DJW Polish Hill River Riesling 2013 – $22 at Vintage Direct, 94 points
There you go! That’s another four 95 point wines to add to the top list of six. The Jim Barry Lodge Hill and the Leeuwin Estate look like real bargains for less than $20, don’t they?
An even bigger bargain could be the 2012 Heggies Riesling that won the Trophy for Best Riesling at the National Wine Show in Canberra just now. You can still buy it for $17 at Winestar.
And then there’s old faithful: Pewsey Vale Riesling, another 2012 you can still buy. It won the trophy for Best White at the 2012 Queensland Show (plus the top gold at 98 Points), and it won a Gold Medal at last year’s International Riesling Challenge in Canberra. $16 at Winestar.
The Best of the Rest Under $25
Anyhow, here’s the short list of GTW Rieslings you can buy for less than $25, followed by wines that aren’t mentioned but should be on your list. No comment means we don’t know the wine.
Castelli Estate Riesling 2012 – GTW 97, JH 95, Ray Jordan 94 – $25 at the winery. WA’s Great Southern is knocking hard on South Australia’s door.
Castelli Estate Riesling 2013 – $21 at Winestreet Jeremy Pringle 92+. A highly reliable friend and Riesling Freak reports that the 2013 is a great wine as well.
Freycinet Riesling 2012 – GTW 96, JH 93 $25 at Kemenys. Tasmania is knocking on the same door, it seems, and so are the southern highlands.
Tertini Riesling 2012 – GTW 96 – $30 at the winery . Joining the winery’s Summit Club entitles you to 15% discount, which brings it down to almost $25. We’ve had the 2006 and 2008, and they’re among the best Rieslings we’ve ever drunk. Austere, elegant, more minerals than citrus, depth and length aplenty, serious aging potential . You can still buy the Tertini Riesling 2008 at Kemenys.
Tim Adams Riesling 2013 – $19 at 1st Choice – GTW 95. Winefront 91. We’re inclined to believe the Winefront since recent Tim Adams Rieslings haven’t really excited us.
Leasingham Bin 7 Riesling 2013 – $16 at Dan M’s. The owners sold the winery and the vineyards but Bin 7 goes on somehow. The 2012 was a very good Riesling in the fuller style.
Crabtree Watervale Riesling 2012, $20 at Kemenys – GTW 94, JH 95. Pretty restrained for a Watervale Riesling from 2012, very impressive line and length. One of our favourites from 2012.
Richmond Grove Watervale Riesling 2012 – $17 at 1st Choice – GTW 94. Haven’t tried these since John Vickery retired.
Mesh Riesling 2012 – $24 at MyCellars. GTW 94, Winefront 95+, Ralph Kyte-Powell 96. We don’t know it but this Eden Valley Riesling clearly gets people excited.
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We’ll draw the line there, not because wines under 94 points aren’t worth buying, but because it’s a long list and we’re lazy. Let’s look at some odd results instead:
O’Leary Walker Polish Hill River Riesling 2013 – $19 at Winestar and Kemenys. GTW 90, WF 94, JH 96. These wines are usually closer to 94 than 90. Goes to show how much wine judging can vary.
Heggies Riesling 2013 – $ 18 at Dan M’s. GTW 91 points. Not a lot of reviews on this yet, but 91 seems way too low on recent form.
Ravensworth Riesling 2013 – GTW 91, fared a lot better elsewhere: champion wine of the show at the 2013 Canberra and Region Wine Show, trophy at 2013 International Riesling Challenge. It’s no surprise that the wine has sold out quickly.
Steingarten 2012 – $24 at MyCellars. GTW 93, JH 95, Chris Shanahan 96, Jeremy Oliver 97, Winestate Magazine Riesling of the Year.
Not listed by GTW but worth checking out
Pikes Traditionale Riesling 2013 – $17 at Dan M’s. Trophy 2013 International Riesling Challenge, for best Aussie Riesling. Winefront 94, Jeremy Pringle 94,
Jim Barry Watervale 2013 – $14 at Dan M’s. Jeremy Pringle 94, Winefront 93, BWU$20 93. This is such a bargain Riesling, and Jim Barry is making such great wine – Tom was GTW’s young winemaker of the year 2013. Hard to understand how this tasting came up with 90 points for the Florita Riesling.
Pewsey Vale Eden Valley Riesling 2013 – $14.60 at Dan M’s. Winefront 94, Pringle 94
Sons of Eden Freya Riesling 2012 – $19 at Kemenys. JH 96
Stefano Lubiana Riesling 2011 – $25 at Kemenys. 96 from JH
Wilson Vineyard Polish Hill River Riesling 2013 – $22 at Kemenys. 94 from the Winefront.
Claymore Wines Joshua Tree Riesling 2013 – $16 at Kemenys. Winefront 94
St Hallett Eden Valley Riesling 2013 – $18 in a 6-pack at Graysonline. JH 96, Winefront 90. We’re closer to the latter.
Knappstein Hand Picked Riesling 2013 – $16 at Dan M’s. Winefront 94, BWU$20 90.
Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling 2013 – $23 at Dan M’s. Winefront 93+. We’d give it 94, coz it’s one of the best Hanlin Hills we’ve had for a while combining underlying power with elegant restraint. Have found this on special for $20.
Plantagenet Riesling 2012 – $20 at MyCellars. JH 96 points. We thought 93/94. Southern Comfort, citrus freshness but minerals too, great line and length and future.
Kim