Happenings

A must read : The Riesling Story

Best White Wine on Earth , by Stuart Pigott

Among the pioneering group that succeeded in switching almost the entire OZ and New Zealand wine industries over to screw caps was the Mitchell family’s winery in Watervale. Modest but determined Jane and Andrew Mitchell began making Riesling in 1977, three years before Jeffrey Grosset. Since 1985 these wines have come from an unirrigated hillside vineyard in Watervale with spectacular views over the valley, planted with 50-year-old vines, to the west, The Red-clay loam soil (technical term; terra rossa) over limestone results in wines that are more elegant than the OZ norm. The white peach, lime and floral aromas in their youth develop into herbal and toast notes as they age. The McNicol Riesling, which grows on a ridge at even higher altitude (1640 feet / 500 meters) with quartzite soil, is more challenging because of its steely acidity and is therefore only after is has been aged for several years in the bottle. There’s nothing flashy about the Mitchells or their wines, and their winery isn’t cool in the same way that some newer and smaller ones are. Nor have their moderate prices encourage a cult to develop around their wines. But their consistently excellent quality and utterly distinctive style over the past decade is unexcelled in Australia.

 

The Stuart Pigott Riesling Global Top 100
Top 20 Dry Riesling

ALBERT BOXLER, Niedermorschwihr, Alsace (France)
GEORG BREUER, Rudesheim, Rheingau (Germany)
CHRISTMANN, Gimmeldingen, Pflaz (Germany)
DONNHOFF, Oberhausen, Nahe (Germany)
EMRICH-SCHONLEBER, Monzingen, Nahe (Germany)
JEFFREY GROSSET, Auburn, Clare Valley (South Australia)
HIRSCH, Mammern, Kamptal (Austria)
KELLER, Florsheim-Dalsheim, Rheinhessen (Germany)
FRANZ KUNSTLER, Hochheim, Rheigau (Germany)
*MITCHELL , Watervale, Clare Valley (South Australia, Australia)
“Andrew and Jane Mitchell’s Watervale Rieslings are ideal for those who frequently find Australian dry Rieslings too one-sidedly acidic. In that context, these are wines for silk fetishists”
Nigl, Senftenberg, Kremstal(Austria)
RUDI PICHLER, Wosendorf, Wachau (Austria)
REBHOLZ, Siebeldingen, Pfalz, (Germany)
SMITH MADRONE, Napa Valley (California, US)
TRIMBACH, Ribeauville, Alsace (France)
WAGEN-STEMPEL, Siefersheim, Rheinhessen (Germany)
DR. WEHRHEIM, Birkweiler, Pfalz (Germany)
WEINBACH/FALLER,Kayserberg, Alsace (France)
WITTMANN, Westhofen, Rheinhessen (Germany)
ZIND-HUMBRECHT, Turkheim, Alsace (France)