• Medium-sweet style
• French oak
• Cirtus blossom & white florals
• Mineral notes

"Medium riesling with citrus, lime and wildflower flavours. Initial sweetness creates a lovely tension with fruity acidity, which helps drive a lengthy finish. An ethereal texture adds delicacy and charm" Bob Campbell, Master Of Wine, Real Review, Aug 2018

"Partly fermented in large granite tanks, this is a rich, characterful, gently sweet riesling. Light to medium-bodied (10.5% alc/vol), it has a welcoming fragrance and delicious depth, complexity and harmony" Michael Cooper, Noted, Nov 2019

Giesen has a quality Riesling pedigree, with Giesen Estate Riesling being the highest selling Riesling in New Zealand. Thanks to the bounty of the 2018 harvest we have been able to create a unique, limited release Riesling. Selecting Riesling grapes from Awatere Valley, we fermented and matured a portion of the blend in granite, creating this precious gem, Gemstone by Giesen.

This wine is enticing and textural with notes of luscious citrus blossom and white florals. A beautiful flow and balance with subtle sweetness, minerality and a lingering character-filled finish.

2018 saw one of the best flowerings in history, which gave Giesen bunches of fruit full of evenly sized berries, which ensured there was even ripening throughout the bunches. It was the hottest January on record, which meant the vines progressed through the season well ahead of the long term average. Once the Riesling fruit is harvested in the cool of the morning it is transported immediately to the winery and pressed as soon as it arrives, to minimise skin contact to retain purity of flavour. The free run juice is divided into three parcels for fermentation, a portion went into Giesen’s large granite tanks, a second parcel went into 500L French oak barrels with at least four years age and the final parcel went into stainless steel tanks. It’s the inclusion of wine fermented and matured in granite which makes Gemstone special. After fermentation the wine was held on lees for two months before the three parcels were blended ahead of bottling.

Food Pairing: Winemakers suggest pairing the Gemstone Riesling with Vietnamese fresh spring rolls.