Felton Road Riesling Bannockburn 2022

A delicate nose of spice, mineral and subtle stone fruit deceives for what is about to come. On first taste, one is struck by the sheer intensity of ripe peach and nectarine that coats the mouth and seamlessly integrates with the residual sugar. It’s a real battle between the profound flavor and residual sweetness that makes it hard to think of it as a sweet wine: the persuasiveness of the flavor takes center stage. A refreshing lick of acidity kicks in to harmonise and allow the complete package to linger for minutes.

Felton Road farms four properties totaling 34 ha in the Bannockburn subregion of Central Otago. Blocks 2 and 4 are located on gravel fans within the Elms Vineyard with deep soils of angular schist gravels. Meticulous summer management of a single vertical shoot positioned (VSP) canopy ensures even and early fruit maturity. Shoot thinning, shoot positioning, leaf plucking, bunch thinning and harvest are all carried out by hand to ensure optimum quality fruit. Cover crops are planted between rows to assist in vine balance and to improve soil health and general biodiversity.

Felton Road farms four properties totaling 34 ha in the Bannockburn subregion of Central Otago. Blocks 2 and 4 are located on gravel fans within the Elms Vineyard with deep soils of angular schist gravels. Meticulous summer management of a single vertical shoot positioned (VSP) canopy ensures even and early fruit maturity. Shoot thinning, shoot positioning, leaf plucking, bunch thinning and harvest are all carried out by hand to ensure optimum quality fruit. Cover crops are planted between rows to assist in vine balance and to improve soil health and general biodiversity.

Riesling from Block 4 of The Elms vineyard was carefully hand-picked, whole bunch pressed, settled for 5-9 days before racking, then fermented with indigenous yeasts. The 4 week fermentation was stopped by chilling when the optimal balance was achieved between the acidity, alcohol and residual sugar (55g/L). Careful winemaking with minimal processing highlights the crisp natural acidity and the Riesling characters are delicately poised in the low alcohol of 9.0%.