Dry Riesling 2016

Felton Road, tasting note (feltonroad.com – produktside feltonroad.com, hentet 2026-10-19): 2016 Felton Road Dry Riesling – område: Bannockburn (Central Otago); drue: Riesling. Producentens noter (engelsk): Tasting note: Blossom and lime with white peach leading to a stony richness and great texture on the palate. The wine possesses a depth which is becoming more evident with the increasing vine age, giving a serious complexity to the palate and a core seam of acid. A completely clean and long finish. This is the 20th iteration of this wine, and it might be the finest Dry Riesling yet. Vineyard & viticulture: Felton Road farms four properties totaling 32 ha in the Bannockburn sub-region of Central Otago. 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. El Nino provided westerlies and early warmth combining with high soil-moisture to push early budburst and vibrant growth. Temperatures rose rapidly towards flowering with moisture-wicking wind conditions keeping growth in check. December brought extreme diurnal swings the likes of which we’re not accustomed to seeing so early in the season. Afternoon highs in the low thirties balanced by single-figures overnight. The diurnal pattern continued through January with a full 30°C swing on the 11th. February, unusually, proved to be the warmest month. Overnight temperatures averaged 12°C with scattered rain events offering some relief for desiccated soils. Veraison was early with a rapid onset but prolonged completion. Pinot Noir skins showed impressive colour and condition by the start of March. Peak temperatures dropped away as high diurnals continued, offering a balancing tension and finesse after the welcome but unusual early season warmth. Chardonnay picking began on March 22nd with the first Pinot only one day later. Harvest concluded with Riesling on April 18th. Vinification: Riesling from Block 2 of The Elms vineyard was hand-picked then carefully whole bunch pressed, followed by a long slow fermentation (10 weeks) with indigenous yeasts to almost complete dryness (5g/L RS). The wine rested on fine lees to build palate weight and with minimal processing to highlight the delicate Riesling characters before bottling in earlyAugust.