Riesling

This sweet wine combines two of our favourite things; Riesling at its most concentrated and great acidity, which keeps it fresh, devoid of any cloying flavours. 

Late harvest Riesling is made from grapes left to hang longer than usual on the vines, providing depth of flavour and richness without an unctuous, mouth filling style. 

Serve chilled with aged cheese; cheddar or parmigiana or grana padano.  An outstanding wine. 

From the winery...

Our Mackenzie William Riesling is named after our eldest grandson. Our Eden Valley Riesling is delicately picked from our longstanding vines planted in the 1960s, and 1980s, and from our cherished, deep-rooted 1890s vines ? believed to be some of the oldest in Australia. Each batch of fruit bestows its unique attributes, creating quintessential Eden Valley citrus and minerally characteristics which our region is so well known for, and a complexity that ensures our dry style?s impressive length of finish.

Hand picked grapes go into this smooth, dry and way too drinkable Riesling made from dry grown vines on low yielding vineyard sites in the elevated Eden Valley. 

This Riesling is beautifully integrated as a youthful wine, drinking well without acid dominating and it has the complexity, palate weight and structure that will reward further aging. 

This is a gift for the Riesling lover in your life. 

Rockford Wines' legacy

Rockford Wines is an icon itself and a relatively new one, established in 1971 by Robert O'Callaghan, who has forged a reputation for preserving winemaking tradition and saving many of the world's oldest grape vines from being pulled up in the Australian Government's vine pull schemes of the 1970s and 1980s.

The Rockford vintage shed houses equipment from 50 to 100 years ago, which was discarded by other wineries as modernisation took over.

Full bodied, complex, dry as a bone made in a delicious modern, lively style of French Riesling with refreshing lime and green apple aromas supported by bright acidity and a waxy texture. This wine is made with grapes grown an 25 year old vines on a vineyard originally planted in the 17th Century at Rouffach in Alsace. This most eastern wine region in France was once part of Germany, hence Riesling is one of the key wines made here, and the Mure family have retained ownership of their vineyard and brand for 12 generations now. 

Dry Riesling is one of Domaine Rewa's specialities and highlights the lively, succulent flavours of lime zest, lemon notes and white floral aromas that make Riesling one of the world's great white grape varieties. 

This refreshing wine also highlights the greatness of Central Otago as a great Riesling region. 

Classic dry Alsace Riesling. Hand picked from Riquewihr vineyards. Matured on fine lees for 4 months, no oak.  cropped to Grand Cru levels bringing superb concentration. Green apple, lime, dried pineapple, waxed honey, generous length and pleasing minerality.

Vineyard & Viticulture 

Felton Road farms four properties totaling 34 ha in the Bannockburn subregion of Central Otago.  Block 1 is a north facing slope immediately west of Block 3 on The Elms vineyard. It consists of the same Waenga soils (deep silt loams) as Block 3 and starkly contrasts the schist gravel soils of our Riesling in Blocks 2 and 4. Meticulous summer management of a single vertical shoot positioned (VSP) canopy ensures even and early fruit maturity. Shoot thinning, shoot positioning, leaf plucking, bunch thinning and harvest are all carried out by hand to ensure optimum quality fruit. Cover crops are planted between rows to assist in vine balance and to improve soil health and general biodiversity.

Vinification 

Riesling from Block 1 was carefully hand-picked on April 19 followed by whole bunch pressing. The juice was settled for 6 days, then racked and followed by a relatively fast 2 week fermentation with indigenous yeasts. The fermentation was stopped by chilling to balance the high natural acidity with residual sweetness of 56g/L, resulting in the low alcohol of 9.5%. The wine rested on fine lees with minimal processing (no fining or cold stabilisation) before bottling in lateAugust to highlight the delicate Riesling characters.

Tasting Note

Intense aromas of nectarine and apricot are complimented by attractive florals and hints of marzipan. Mature Riesling vines grown in the heavy silt loam soils of north facing Block 1, has, as always, produced this distinctive, pure and refreshing style of Riesling. The natural sweetness is there, but attractively bound in the bright acidity and light (9.5% alc) framework. Irresistible now, but also extremely age-worthy for further complexities to emerge.

Wehlener Sonnenuhr (pronounced vay-len-er zon-en-ooer - The Sundial of Wehlen) is one of the greatest vineyards in the Middle Mosel. This precipitously steep, rocky vineyard consistently yields some of the most elegant and sophisticated white wines in the world. Citrus and white peach flavors predominate when the wines are young, turning to a pure expression of the mineral soil as they age.

Spatlese -  The Spatlese (late picked) designation means that the grapes get an extra week or two of hang time, which helps them develop higher ripeness and deeper flavours than Kabinett. 

Technical Info

Grape Variety: 100% Riesling

Appellation: Mosel

Quality level: Pr?dikatswein Sp?tlese 

VDP Classification: VDP.Grosse Lage

Vineayard: Wehlener Sonnenuhr

Soil: Blue slate soil

Viticulture: Sustainable, according to strict German environmental regulations

Picking method: Selective hand-picking

Blue Slate Soil is the most typical type of slate in the Middle Mosel. Rich in potassium, it provides vital nutrients to the vines and gives the wines a pronounced mineral edge that enhances the naturally high acidity of Riesling. In addition to the heat retaining blue slate soil, the vineyards are characterized by incredibly steep slopes, a favourable position near the river and excellent drainage.

Dr. L embodies the elegant and racy style of classic Mosel Riesling. It is refreshing and fruity, with a fine mineral edge that is typical of the region as the fruit comes vineyards nestled amongst the slate slopes of the Mosel. It is a true ambassador for the Mosel Region that delivers excellent quality and consistency in every vintage.

A lovely Dry Riesling from Bannockburn in Central Otago, crisp, mineral & drinking beautifully!

Tasting Notes
Lime blossom, orange rind, white lotus flower and schist mineral notes on the nose lead to a spicy tightly textured palate expressing gorgeous poise, drive and balance.
About the Wine
An estate grown, single block selection made from grapes grown at our Two Paddocks’ Red Bank Vineyard in Alexandra, Central Otago, our Dry Riesling is a thought provoking expression of this location. A balance of acidity and dryness means it’s a perfect fit for food matches - the perfect counter-balance to a creamy pasta dish like a cabonara, the fresh saltiness of Oysters kilpatrick and holds its own against vibrant and spicy Asian dishes.

Vintage Comments
A mild, wet 2022 winter meant soils held a lot of water going into the spring and inter-row companion crops including clover, phacelia and barley got off to a strong start. Early spring was very cold and then as spring warmed up in November shoot growth was strong. Flowering started the first week in December and fruit set was considered good on most blocks. Mid-summer heat was high and growing degree days were above 2022 and on par with 2019 by the end of the season.

Picking dates were moving forward until the second half of March when the heat ran out and the final ripening was slow and cool. Harvest started on the 27th of March at Red Bank Vineyard and finished on the 21st of April at The First Paddock, Gibbston. Cropping levels were just short of the optimum 2022 crop.

VINEYARD MANAGEMENT - Crafted from a tiny half-hectare block of clone 110 at Two Paddocks Red Bank Vineyard at Earnscleugh, Central Otago, which consistently produces the ripest and most intense Riesling on the estate. All grapes are grown using organic principles, hand harvested and fermented in stainless steel.

The soils in this block are well draining schist loam and the vines tend to thrive. Additionally, the hot day time temperatures that Alexandra experiences over summer encourages riper stone fruit flavours, until late afternoon when the ‘Roxburgh Doctor’ wind arrives and causes a dramatic drop in temperature and hence the significantly cooler nights that the region is known for.

WINE MAKERS NOTE: Whole bunch pressed and then a light racking before fermentation. An indigenous fermentation which took 5 weeks at between 14-21 degrees Celsius. The wine was then held on light lees until it was racked and filtered for clarity and stabilisation prior to bottling.

Tasting Notes
Nectarine stone, honey dew and lemon zest on the nose lead to a rich creamy texture, finishing with freshness and poise. A fantastic aperitif style that is also well matched with richer dishes of cheese, pork, charcuterie, seafood and poultry.
About the Wine
Grown at Red Bank Vineyard, Alexandra and featuring the Proprietor’s Grandfather, Sydney Neill Wine Merchant, on the label, Picnic Riesling is our perennial favourite and a wonderful introduction to the pleasure of Central Otago Riesling. We think it is just as much a dinner wine as a luncheon – equally enjoyable at home outdoors, as at the Captain’s Table. Hand harvested and crafted in to a delicious refreshing off-dry style appealing to just about everyone on the planet.

Vintage Comments
A mild, wet 2022 winter meant soils held a lot of water going into the spring and inter-row companion crops including clover, phacelia and barley got off to a strong start. Early spring was very cold and then as spring warmed up in November shoot growth was strong. Flowering started the first week in December and fruit set was considered good on most blocks. Mid-summer heat was high and growing degree days were above 2022 and on par with 2019 by the end of the season.

Picking dates were moving forward until the second half of March when the heat ran out and the final ripening was slow and cool. Harvest started on the 27th of March at Red Bank Vineyard and finished on the 21st of April at The First Paddock, Gibbston. Cropping levels were just short of the optimum 2022 crop.

VINEYARD MANAGEMENT - Soils are schist based gravelly loams. Own roots – cane cuttings from Felton Road. Single cane, one bunch per shoot and very close planted at 5500 vines per hectare. Both shoot and lateral thinned to reduce crop load. Leaves that expose the grapes when ripening are also plucked off to increase sunlight exposure in to the vine canopy. Hand harvested.

WINE MAKERS NOTES - Hand harvested on the 17th April 2023 at 21 Brix and whole bunch pressed, meaning that the press was loaded with the grapes as intact bunches, versus removing the stems first. This pressed juice was then steeped on those skins (in wine language we call that ‘skin contact’) for 14 hours to extract aromatics and flavour and then it was inoculated with yeast and fermented to ‘just off-dry’ wine. We then left the wine sitting in tank on its lees (spent yeast cells that boost body and complexity) for three months before bottling. Please note the International Riesling scale on the back label.