Crawford River 2025 Henty Riesling

"The 2025 Riesling from Crawford River has a subtle gauze of fine mineral reduction drawn over its aromatic main profile. This in turn brims with lime zest, green apple skins, and white peppercorns together with crushed shells in the first; then in a second aromatic layer plumper Tahitian lime flesh and Pomelo vesicles, warm stones, cardamom. Around this wreathe, alongside the original faint smoke of reduction, white citrus blossoms and spring orchard aromas, including petrichor. A wine, despite the warm vintage, of firmly apparent structure and presence. The palate is initially fleshy and generous then gloriously ‘steely’ (as opposed, in previous vintages, to being ‘minerally’ perhaps more replete with crushed stone); as if the pulp of myriad citrus here: as if  mandarin, lime, and orange flesh sluicing down polished metal. Mandarin oil, bitter Seville Orange; Tahitian lime; a melange of peppercorns and untoasted green cardamom; dabs of candle wax, a note akin to laminated pastry, and white grapefruit pith on the close, which feels very central on the palate. 

Immensely enjoyable right now and with considerably more heft than most if not all Australian Rieslings. Fine." — David