Held at Dolton House in Pyrmont, this was a fantastic opportunity to try not only some of the best Rieslings in Australia, but some really great dry Rieslings from Europe. A majority of the Riesling exported from Germany has some residual sugar and generally the dry Riesling they tend to either keep for themselves or they don't seem to have a market for....Australia is another country that loves their dry Riesling so it is a perfect market for them to export to. Not to mention the margins they must get in Australia are huge but more on that later.
Most of the major players in the Australian Riesling market were there..such as Grosset and Petaluma....but I was mainly interested in the stuff from Germany...
I'm a big fan of German Rieslings...Unlike many Australians (I'm a Yank so I guess that is where it is from), I don't mind some residual sugar....With good fruit and enough acidity, the RS does not feel sticky and thick in your mouth. Riesling with RS is still a very serious wine but a good example of what many Australians think was highlighted to me when a lady, who had just tried a Kabinett had asked the maker if it was a dessert wine. The answer back to her was no but she looked at him like he didn't know what he was talking about.
Highlights of the German Rieslings:
Clemens Busch.
Clemens Busch Marienburg Rothenpfad Grosses Gewachs 2010. For those that aren't familiar with GG, it is basically Germany's "1st Growth" classification when it comes to their dry Rieslings... This wine starts with good acid, and really nice fruit paired with a good amount a minerality. What made this wine so fantastic was the complexity as I was consistently picking up different flavors while I had it in my mouth...It had a long fantastic finish... The difference between this Riesling and a really great Australian Riesling was it had slightly less acid (but definitely a good amount), it showed better fruit and far better complexity. Really good Australian Rieslings tend to show their secondary characters (which are fantastic) but are far more upfront and definitely do not show the 20 different colors this one did....My biggest complaint about this wine in Australia? TOO EXPENSIVE. Many good GG's go anywhere from 35-60 internationally....Why does Australia have them for 100+ no idea...
Donnhoff. I think anyone that has tried German Rieslings has heard of Donnhoff...A huge variety of wines out of Nahe, Donnhoff makes some of my favorites Rieslings and certainly they didn't disappoint.
With their regular 2010 Donnhoff Tonschiefer Dry being very ordinary (I prefer most Australian Dry Rieslings to low end dry German Rieslings)..
2010 Donnhoff Oberhauser Leistenberg Kabinett was significantly better and a nice change from so many dry Rieslings. Good Acidity to balance the RS, nice fruit, good minerality..nice slatey taste...
2010 Donnhoff Neiderhauser Hermannshohle Spatlese. A bit out of place since a vast majority of the Riesling here were dry but still, really fantastic wine. Laser like Acidity really balanced out the RS...I love Rieslings like this. Australians don't seem to like any RS but I think like this, its great. Great with food, great on its own...Bright fruit and brilliant finish. Why is RRP on this over 100? I'll wait and buy more overseas.
2010 Donnhoff Neiderhauser Hermannshohle Grosses Gewachs. I place this and the Clemens Busch above as the two best Rieslings at the show...Wonderful nose...Great Acidity that brings out the purity of the fruit....I love how this changes and evolves in my mouth. Picking up some really fantastic minerality....Finish is long...clean...fantastic...
Australian Riesling... I really enjoy good Aussie Rieslings...Really good acidity (sometimes too much), good toasty honey characters come into play as they age a bit...To be honest, I wish there was a bit more Residual Sugar in some of them...Dry doesn't mean it needs to be bone dry. And something with RS doesn't mean it is not a serious wine.
I think there were more disappointments than anything else Australian wise...but highlights for me were:
Tertini 2008 Riesling. Out of the Southern Highlands, a really great Aussie Riesling. Very good acidity which makes the sub 9g/l RS balance out perfectly. It softens it a bit but definitely not perceived sweetness, if anything it helps bring out the fruit...Wonderful bright fruit and the wine is already picking up secondary characteristics which is great. The winemaker thinks it'll last quite awhile longer and I'd have to agree. Thoroughly impressed, I think this might've been the best Australian at the show...beating out Grosset, Petaluma, Pewsey Vale and a few other better known Rieslings.
Heggies 2011 Riesling. I'm not sure if it was because I was so disappointed with Grosset and Mesh...but this one, which I don't even think had representation at the tasting, definitely showed them up. Very good Acidity, very good fruit...it seemed to have fantastic balance.
I definitely think Aussie stuff needs to have a little more Residual Sugar...I definitely think Acid is good..too much acid is not....low acid is really bad...and while there were some rather flat Aussie Rieslings, I think overall they do a dry/bone dry Riesling quite well. Especially at the low end, they beat their German counterparts. At the same time, on the the high end, while they gain a good amount of complexity, definitely they're falling behind those from Germany. Acid is good, too much acid probably isn't. The fruit needs to show better..it's possible they need to allow for some RS to add complexity...Brilliant tasting overall....One of the best events I've been to.
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