There are nice things happening with Riesling in our fine land. Sure, we all love the super sleek, limey wines with their laser–like precision and clarity of line; they are, after all, one of the most undervalued wine styles on the market.

But, a growing band of vignerons are pushing the boundaries with the variety; some skin contact here, some lees work there, to craft wines that display all of the varietal characters we have grown to love but with an extra layer of plushness and complexity.

The Koerner Watervale Riesling is one of this new breed of Rieslings. Brothers, and Clare Valley lads, Damon and Jonathan Koerner, source their fruit from the Gullyview Vineyard in this famous Clare sub–region.

The wine is a slinky, textural little beauty that provides fascinating, delicious drinking and is certainly a winner in the food matching stakes. Aromas of lime and citrus fruits are immediately apparent along with hints of soft spice, nougat.

Crushed stone, white flowers and clotted cream. There is a gentle, exotic edge to the aromas here, captivating, drawing one deeper into the glass. On the palate, that classic Watervale minerality is there in spades but it is a wine that is unabashedly about texture and mouthfeel, a slight phenolic tug seemingly pulling the wine across the tongue.

Again, lime and grapefruit characters abound, along with a hint of paw paw in the distance. Softly spiced with a light creamy edge and a bright line of acidity, it is a wine that holds the drinkers’ attention admirably and I, for one, am certainly happy that people are tweaking Riesling like this. Superb.

KOERNER 2016 Watervale Riesling

koernerwine.com.au