2008 Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling

By Jono • September 9, 2008

2008 was extremely difficult for many wine grape growers in Australia. A vintage of two halves. Some of the hottest and driest conditions on record came mid vintage in many parts of southern Australia. Any grower who still had fruit left on the vine must have had their heart in their mouth, and for good reason. Many elected not to pick after the heat wave, and those that did, may have regretted it.

However, many of the earlier varieties avoided the heat, and luckily, much of Clare Valley’s Riesling was safely in tank when the heat wave struck. I’ve read a number of reviews on this wine already and many seem to find it a little dim, and lacking in sharpness and crisp acidity, quite possibly from a sub-conscious expectation of the 2008 vintage. I beg to differ.

Alcohol:

Blokes Notes: This wine expresses the typical lemon lime characters of the Hanlin Hill vineyard, together with talc, minerality and a balance of crisp acid and refreshing mouthfeel. It’s hard to find a bad Petaluma Riesling, but to produce one of this calibre in an extremely difficult vintage is exceptional. It has great depth and layers of fruit, such an appealing wine.

Categories: Blog, Blokes Notes, Wine Reveiws
Tags: Feature, Features

About the Author

Jono

Jono has been involved in the wine industry since he was quite young. His parents had a small vineyard and winery in the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia, and spent plenty of school holidays working in the vineyard and winery. He completed a Bachelor of Agricultural Science (Oenology) from the University of Adelaide (formely the Roseworthy Agricultural College). He also holds a Post Graduate Degree in Business Management from Monash University. His wine industry experience include working as a winemaker for Petaluma in the Adelaide Hills under the legendary Brian Croser. He was then sent to Smithbrook in the Pemberton region of Western Australia, then owned by Petaluma. He spent 6 years at Smithbrook managing the vineyard and winery, and during that time also completed a vintage at Chateau Carsin in Bordeaux. The two years leading into 2008, he traveled the world with his partner sampling the worlds best wines, and also fulfilling his other passion of equestrian competition.