2012 Winemakers Reserve Riesling

Alcohol: 12 %
ρH: 3.35
Total Acidity: 8.5 g/L
Residual sugar: less than 1 g/L

Wine Makers: Alain Rousseau, John Bown

Full bodied, slight petroleum characters, honey and citrus on the palate with a soft finish.

Spring weather was dry and warm and was followed by the hottest and driest summer ever recorded. We started picking the sparkling grapes on 08 March 2013 and by the 20th March we were already picking some Riesling and Pinot Gris. The Pinots were picked early to mid April. The white have a good acid structure, ripe fruit and lower alcohol. The reds show good tannins structure and fruit concentration.

Variety: 100% Riesling, sustainably grown
Region: 100% Coal River Valley
Yield: 6 to 7 tonnes per hectare (2.4 – 2.8 tonnes per acre)

Destemmed and pumped into small fermenting bins. Inoculated the following day with a neutral yeast strain, followed by twice-daily plunge. Pressed after a few days when ferment reach 3°c and pumped into 1-year-old French oak barriques for completion of ferment. Lees stirred twice over 8-month maturation. Cold stabilised and filtered for bottling.