New World: Riesling
2019 Gold 3 Silver 3 Bronze 3 Commended 7
2018 Gold 3 Silver 7 Bronze 1 Commended 7
Australia has dominated the Riesling section of this competition over the past few years, and its three Golds (and nine medals) saw it continue that trend. Our tasters were very happy with what they saw here, praising the country for its consistency and quality. There’s a definitive Aussie style, and they do it regularly.
Although not especially cheaply. You might think that the lack of oak in these wines would mean a stream of great wines around the £10 mark. But in fact, the majority of our medal winners here were more expensive than that – often significantly so.
Was that a problem? Not really. Anyone ordering Riesling without a recommendation probably knows the pedigree of these wines, while a food-match recommendation from the sommelier (an area where these score highly) is less price sensitive in any case.
FROM THE TASTING TEAMS
‘All were very good: flavour, texture, richness, acidity. I’ve never had a bad Australian Riesling.’ Laurent Richet MS, team leader
‘German Riesling is a bit more popular, but New World Riesling is a good competitor.’ Gabriele Bertotti, Maze by Gordon Ramsay
‘Very consistent flight. Around the middle price they were really well made.’ Guillaume Mahaut, ETM Group
‘Compared to German Riesling, they’re more succulent, juicy… they didn’t have the lightness that you get in German Riesling – more apricot and peach, stone fruit flavours. Not exactly graceful and light on their feet, but all had succulence.’ Nigel Lister, team leader
‘Very good quality throughout, showing true typicality of Aussie Riesling, all tart lime and racing acidity. A few stand-outs, with more complex lemon verbena and thyme notes resonating in the best examples.’ Claire Love, Loves Consultancy