Hawkshead Central Otago Riesling 2020

Description

• Dry style
• Citrus
• White blossom
• Rounded mouthfeel

"It is delightfully fruited and elegantly poised, showing white flesh nectarine, crunchy apple, lime sorbet and floral characters on the nose, leading to a brilliantly focused palate that is delicate and linear. The wine offers whispering sweetness and firm acidity, finishing impressively long and vibrant" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Nov 2020

"Bright, straw-yellow with some depth, lighter edged. The nose is presented elegantly, bright with gentle nuances of white floral and citrus, underlying honey, beeswax and stonefruit. Medium-bodied, dry-ish to taste, a taut core of lemon, lime, tangerine with its zest; intermix with lime flower and honey. Subtle white pepper and minerals unfold as it lingers to a crisp, citrus-fruited finish. Some residual sugar sweetness rounds the mouthfeel, balances the taut, mouthwatering acid. Citrus zest and a light phenolic grip bound stony minerals and crunchy acidity to a lengthy, dry finish. This is a citrusy Riesling with charming details and tension, presented with a rounded mouthfeel and dry, lengthy finish. Match with seafood and chicken katsu over the next 3-5 years" Candice Chow, Raymond Chan Wine Reviews, Oct, 2020

"'Bliss in a bottle', the 2020 vintage (4.5*) was grown at Lowburn, in the Cromwell Basin. Bright, light yellow/green, it is a powerful, full-bodied style of Riesling, hand-picked, fermented with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel tanks (97 per cent) and seasoned French oak barriques (3 per cent), and lees-aged for three months. Highly drinkable in its youth, it is scented and mouthfilling, with rich, peachy, slightly spicy flavours, moderate acidity and a dryish (7 grams/litre of residual sugar), very harmonious finish" Michael Cooper, 2021

"Hints of rose petal/rose water lead, shifting to red apple, white flowers and a floral (attractively) soapy nuance. Ripe red apple, some cooked apple too, picking up hints of citrus and honey on the nicely textural and relatively dry palate. With aeration there’s a crisp, crunchiness emphasising its youthful side, honeyed notes neatly balanced by acidity" Mark Henderson, Otago Daily Times, 2021

Aromatic fragrance of lemon, white blossom and apricots lead to a rich bouquet of ripe citrus and loquat nuances. Refreshingly racy fruit acidity carries the citrus flavour to the palate and flows on to a long lingering, balanced persistent finish. The wine is well structured and leaves a rounded textured mouthfeel. Hawkshead Riesling is a wine of intensity, vitality and tension.

The 2020 Single Vineyard Riesling is from selected blocks in Lowburn, Central Otago. Free-draining soils of loess, schist, and uncemented gravels together with long hours of sunshine produce lively fruit with gentle ripe acidity.

Handpicked on the 24th and 25th of April; 100% whole bunch pressed, with 12 hours skin contact. Indigenous yeast fermented in 97% stainless steel, the remainder in Old French barrique. Fermentation took 12 weeks with the finished wine resting on lees for three months for texture. It was filtered for clarity and stability, no fining undertaken.