WHITE WINE
Clare valley
Vines were first planted in the Clare Valley by John Horrocks in 1840 and expanded until around 1903. A resurgence of interest in the 1980s saw a similar expansion of wineries and large investments. Located north west of the Barossa Valley at a slightly higher altitude, the Clare Valley’s typography consists of a series of broken valleys, hills and gullies. The best sites are orientated west, at higher altitude, and the soils have significant limestone components. The most important sub districts of the southern Clare Valley are the two distinct sub-regions of Water Vale and Polish Hill River. The areas of Leasingham, Watervale and Auburn with soils of predominantly rich red clay and loam over limestone. Polish Hill River on the other hand is slightly cooler, thus ripening up to five weeks later.
While the majority of vines planted are red with Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz leading the way, paradoxically, Clare is perhaps best known for Riesling; the most planted white variety. Clare Shiraz is full bodied, dense and powerful, with notes of ripe fruits and characteristically powerful tannins, outstanding producers are Wendouree, Gaelic Cemetery and the Jim Barry Armagh. Clare Cabernet is similarly powerful, with firm but ripe tannins. Outstanding producers are Knappstein, Leasingham, Taylors and Wendouree.
Riesling is the most internationally recognised variety of the Clare Valley and is dry, with distinct floral and citrus (lemon and lime zest) characters and good acidity which develop into complex toasty characters with extended bottle age. The two districts of Polish Hill River and Watervale differ in their expressions of Riesling, with Watervale Riesling slightly softer and more floral than the intense, concentrated Polish Hill River wines. The Clare Valley is the heart of Australian Riesling production and the wines are unique among the Rieslings of the world and extraordinarily long lived and incredible value. Outstanding producers include Grosset, Mount Horrocks, O’Leary Walker and Pikes, though this is by no means and exhaustive list. Clare Riesling producers were at the forefront of the screwcap revolution when a number of them decided to bottle their 1999 Rieslings under screwcap.
Sources:
James Halliday's Wine Atlas of Australia, James Halliday
The Oxford Companion to Wine, (ed) Jancis Robinson
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Hesket Chardonnay 2019More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2019RieslingAustralia377Special Price $43.00 Regular Price $51.00 -
Hesket Chardonnay 2021Delightfully fresh and focused, with a faintly floral fragrance of lemon, grapefruit and creamy vanilla/bubblegum oak backed by a hint of spice. Initially round and juicy, its intense citrus flavour moves with poise and style down a lean, refined palate before finishing with tautness and brittleness. While it will certainly flesh out remarkably, leaving most cool-climate Australian chardonnay appearing stripped and shy by comparison, it will retain its signature focus and acidity, none of which I would add, is actually added. JEREMY OLIVER2019RieslingAustralia377$61.00 As low as $54.90 -
Kilikanoon Mort's Reserve Riesling 2018More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2018RieslingAustralia377$63.00 As low as $56.70 -
Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2022More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022RieslingAustralia377$82.00 -
Koerner Pigato Vermentino 2022This seems to be a bit of a chameleon of a wine, satisfying the turbo nerds of orange wine as much as the L platers, especially in further flung or dipping-toe-in-water venues looking to upsize their alt-wine offering. I get stuck into it a bit, therefore. It spent 20 days as a skin ferment/maceration.
It’s so vivid and vibrant, so thirst-quenching and delicious. Tightly wound, very minerally/briny and thirst quenching with fine, chalky texture, an inherent juiciness and good extension of mouth-watering, nashi pear, dried orange flavours. Fragrant too, but the magic happens in the palate – moreish stuff with drinkability through the roof. Such a clever and good wine. And detailed! Less orange winey this year, more salty white winey with texture, let’s say. Kudos. MIKE BENNIE, www.winefront.com
2022VermentinoAustralia377$41.00 As low as $36.90 -
O'Leary Walker Polish Hill River Riesling 2022More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2021RieslingAustralia377$30.00 As low as $27.00 -
Jim Barry Florita Riesling 2015 Museum ReleaseReleased after 6 years in bottle, and you can totally understand, when you drink this, why this is a wise move. This is gloriously toasty: yellow flowers (there's a buttercup vibe through the finish), hinoki, Golden Delicious apples, preserved lemons, yellow peach, pulverised quartz, saline acidity and a creamy undercurrent of crushed nuts. This is verging on sublime. Or perhaps it just is. ERIN LARKIN, James Halliday2015RieslingAustralia377$77.00 As low as $69.30 -
The Learnings Limefinger Riesling 2021On the nose, it’s an alluring medley of lime, mandarin, lime blossom and crushed rocks. The cleansing palate is finely composed, showcasing its purity of fruit. It’s very fine, intense and long, but it needs some time to flesh out. One for the ages – and it lives up to its name. GABRIELLE POY
Fragrant, vanilla, kafir lime and lemongrass sort of thing, along with typical lemon/lime juiciness. It’s quite tight, with a fine chalk dust texture, a bit of spice and a perfumed finish of precision and excellent length. A fair bit of crunch and energy. I really like it. GARY WALSH2021RieslingAustralia377$41.00 As low as $36.90 -
Koerner Watervale Riesling 2022More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022RieslingAustralia377$41.00 As low as $36.90 -
Jim Barry Lavender Off-Dry Riesling 2010More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2015RieslingAustralia377$55.00 As low as $49.50 -
Jim Barry Florita Riesling 2022 375mlI’m doing a few Riesling today, which is not what I’m known for, though I reckon I’m easily the best reviewer of Riesling on TWF. MB, CM, KS and CHC can all eat my dust. Just saying. Aside from the fact that I pretty much never drink Riesling.
Lime, lime rind, lavender, a whole lot of chalk dustiness and crushed rock here too. It’s juicy and fresh, a gin and tonic bitterness, with so much floral perfume, some pepper and spice, and a vigorous fresh squeezed citrus character carrying on a long and powdery finish. Outstanding. Classic Florita, and the best for many years, I feel. GARY WALSH, The Wine Front
2022RieslingAustralia377$31.00 As low as $27.90 -
Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2023An outstanding release of this vaunted wine. It's intense, it's racy, it's complex and nuanced in its fruit, spice, mineral and subtle savoury elements, all of it woven into an extremely persistent and poised textural experience. There's stacks of flavour in all this, yet held within a tensile thrust of raciness and faint chalky pucker. And long, very long. One for the ages here. MIKE BENNIE, James Halliday2023RieslingAustralia377$85.00 -
Grosset Springvale Riesling 2023A flavoursome release of this stalwart Clare riesling; easy access in youth with a sense of high drinkability, concentration of flavour and crystalline acidity. Scents of frangipani, sweet lime, ozone and green apple with similar flavours and a fine, chalky pucker to texture. There's a general prettiness, an inviting juiciness, despite the excellent, powdery textural elements and a freshness overall. It delivers a serious expression of the variety and feels like it is in the zone in youth, yet potential for very long cellaring in the same breath. Delicious, is the byword. MIKE BENNIE, James Halliday2023RieslingAustralia377$60.00 -
Jim Barry Watervale Riesling 2023The ol’ fish n chips special.
A slight smokiness, lavender, lime and lemon. A fair burst of flavour, quite juicy, with some peach in the mix, a little bit rugged, but has crunch and a finish of solid length with a slight quinine-like bitterness. No complaints. Ever reliable wine. GARY WALSH, The Wine Front
2023RieslingAustralia377$25.00 As low as $22.50 -
Jim Barry The Lodge Hill Riesling 2023480 meters above sea level .
Lilac and spice, lime and lemongrass. It’s a juicy wine, all the lemon and lime, a pear skin feel to texture, bright acidity, a big burst of flavour, and a ginger and zest of lime finish of good length. Plenty of spice. Action packed. GARY WALSH, The Wine Front
2022RieslingAustralia377$30.00 As low as $27.00 -
Jim Barry Florita Riesling 2023You often don’t have to say too much about Florita; it’s invariably good.
Tight, stony, slight spiciness like ginger, a little floral. Very pure and refined, lovely crunch and energy on a long finish, offering a little pink grapefruit. All just so. Time will be very kind. An excellent release. GARY WALSH, The Wine Front
2022RieslingAustralia377$66.00 As low as $59.40 -
Rieslingfreak No. 5 Clare Valley Off-Dry Riesling 2023A year like 2023 with an abundance of natural acidity in the grapes, makes it a perfect vintage for exquisitely balanced Off Dry Rieslings. The bouquet is richly imbued with intense tropical fruit aromas of passionfruit, pineapple and papaya, with floral top-notes of orange blossom and honeysuckle. These sweetly succulent aromas transition seamlessly onto lusciously flavoured palate, where the sweet tropical flavours are balanced by a delightful zing of sherbet-like acidity. The natural sweetness of the style adds an unctuous richness to the mid-palate, while the driving natural acidity imparts linearity and length with a crisp, clean finish.2023RieslingAustralia377$30.00 As low as $27.00 -
Dead Man Walking Clare Valley Dry Riesling 2022More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2021RieslingAustralia377$22.00 As low as $19.80 -
Clos Clare Riesling 2023Am I right in thinking 2023 was a good vintage for Clare Valley Riesling? On the back of 2021 and 2022.
A whole lot of flint and crunch and energy here. It’s bony but has flavour, there’s lime zest, lemongrass and spice, bath salts, a grapefruit and lemon sherbet zing, and a smattering of green herbs. Acidity is pure and firm, and the finish is very long and tight, with white pepper to close. No shortage of texture. Excellent. GARY WALSH, The Wine Front
2021RieslingAustralia377$31.00 As low as $27.90 -
O'Leary Walker Watervale Riesling 2023Intensity, length and texture: there’s a combination for you. This tastes of lime, lime rind, bath salts and florals; it has a depth to it; there’s a banana-skin aspect to the aromatics but the palate dives deeper. Rating: very good plus. CAMPBELL MATTINSON, The Wine Front2022RieslingAustralia377$28.00 As low as $25.20 -
Naked Run The First Clare Valley Riesling 2023We have long loved the wines of Naked Run and this years release is no exception. They are always ridiculously good value and represent all that is great about Clare Valley riesling. Off a very high, 475 metre single vineyard site, there is plenty of energy and verve here. You can't go wrong.
Lovely open citrusy florals, a little talcy thing going on some granny smith, apple skin lined with tropical fruits. Laden with succulent citrus and lime, that Clare mineral twang tugging at your tastebuds in all the best ways. It fires straight out of the gate and keeps running. Purity and poise with lush fruits to back it all up.
2022RieslingAustralia377$25.00 As low as $22.50 -
Naked Run Place in Time Sevenhill Riesling 2016Revealing the right amount of aged characters, from lime marmalade on buttered toast to baked ricotta and lemon curd. It's in the complex zone, with some weight and richness throughout. The acidity is still at the forefront, though, so it's lively, frisky even. An excellent, compelling wine. Alas, just 64 dozen made. JANE FAULKNER, James Halliday2014RieslingAustralia377$46.00 As low as $41.40 -
Eldredge Spring Gully Riesling 2023This could be one of the best kept secrets in the Clare Valley with some of the highest vineyards in the region, some up to 530 meters. They have only been around since the mid-90s but have been producing award winning wines since inception.
This is classic Clare riesling with a beautiful floral and citrus drive on the nose with some lifted jasmine notes that sneak around the perimeter and that tell-tale talcy thing going on. Its racy and super juicy with crushed lemon and lime, orange peel, and mandarin that slips around on a finely textured palate. A little zesty thing on the close and red delicious apple too. A wonderful little Clare drop.
2021RieslingAustralia377$20.00 As low as $18.00 -
Leo Buring Leonay Eden Valley Maturation Release Riesling 2013Exceptional Riesling! Restrained, refined, steely and focused. Fresh yet mature; pithy racy and vibrant with classical petrol notes and flinty, smoked, mineral-laced acidity. First in class. INTERNATIONAL WINE & SPIRITS COMPETITION 20202013RieslingAustralia377$67.00 As low as $60.30 -
Leo Buring Leonay Eden Valley Maturation Release Riesling 2017One of the best Leonays for some years. Not every maker got the acidity right in this vintage, wonderful quality awaiting those who did, as you'll find here. Its lime leaf aromas and tinkling acidity are the marks of a wine with a great future. JAMES HALLIDAY
Enchantingly ripe on the nose with evolved aromas of ripe lemon, freshly struck match, tropical fruit and Oriental spice. The palate is gorgeously layered with masterful lingering flavours of juicy mango, succulent kiwi fruit and perky peach. Truly exquisite. INTERNATIONAL WINE & SPIRITS COMPETITION 2020
2013RieslingAustralia377$60.00 As low as $54.00 -
Clos Clare Riesling 2022 375mlParticularly good intensity to be found in the 2022 Clare Valley Rieslings.
Lime, pink grapefruit, bath salts, a little spice, thyme and generally good waft of perfume. It’s intense, with a grapefruit pith and gin and tonic flavour, lime/lemon sorbet, a stony chalky feel, clean acidity, excellent length, with a pleasing quinine and lime zest tang to close. Classic Watervale. A terrific vintage for this wine. GARY WALSH, The Wine Front
2021RieslingAustralia377$22.00 As low as $19.80 -
Jim Barry Florita Riesling 2016 Museum ReleaseMore product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2016RieslingAustralia377$85.00 As low as $76.50 -
Jim Barry Spring Farm Block 18 Riesling 2013More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022RieslingAustralia377$110.00 As low as $99.00 -
Rieslingfreak No.10 Zenit Riesling 2022More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2022RieslingAustralia377$38.00 As low as $34.20 -
Koerner Pigato Vermentino 2023More product information will be added here soon! In the meantime, if you do have any questions at all about this product or others in our store, you can contact us by phone or email. Our friendly and experienced team are always happy to assist - we love drinking, selling, talking about and being in and around wine!
2023VermentinoAustralia377$41.00 As low as $36.90
