It’s always nice to see the producers we represent get a bit of good press.
Good Drop wine blog by Jesse Lewis – 6/05/2012
Tunkalilla Vineyard Riesling 2008
A Riesling from the mighty Northwestern state of Oregon. I don’t know why I say mighty because I haven’t been there, but it must be if they can produce Riesling of this calibre. It stopped me in my tracks the first time I tasted it.
It also happens to be made by Brian Croser of Petaluma and Tappanappa fame. 250 cases made and imported/distributed by Terroir Selections. Tunkalilla is also a beach in South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula with a name that means ‘place of many smells’…
Gorgeous aromatics, and unmistakably Riesling. Significantly floral, but with accents of lime, flint and bath salts. If you concentrate, you can discern the off-dry levels of residual sugar, though sugar/acid balance is pinpoint. A smear of grape jelly flavour (but no peanut butter) is both pleasant and an unintentional nod to the US of A. Light in body, with minerally grip and acidity carrying the wine a long way.
A case of when the tag ‘off-dry’ almost seems insulting. It’s Germanic in the sense that the modest sugar level (8.6g/L) serves to heighten the expression of the Riesling grape, but the ultimate goal of a ‘dry table wine’ is achieved. Tossing up between 95 and 96 points. The following rating sums it up well enough.
Outstanding – Exceptional