Description
Crawford River wines from Henty in South Western Victoria are crafted exclusively from hand-picked and selected fruit grown at their estate vineyard, whereupon they are vinified and bottled on site. The fruit is brought to the winery in small parcels, where meticulous attention is paid to detail. Patience and time are of the essence in their winery.
James Halliday on Crawford River: ” .. is ideally suited to the growing and making of diamond-like rieslings of towering longevity … My love affair with Crawford River Riesling began many years ago, and burns as brightly today as it did when I first tasted it.”
The vines for this wine were planted in 2000 and this has always been produced separately to the old block which was planted in 1975. The Crawford River vineyard lies at the alluvial edge of a volcanic lava flow. The 11.5 Ha vineyard has its roots in an unusually complex, mineral-rich soil base. Gravelly, friable, basalt loam overlays permeable clay which in turn lies above a limestone base created by an ancient, risen seabed.
From the winemaker …”After 12 years of making this wine, we continue to see a structural and textural difference between our older vines and the younger block and so we continue to make the ‘young vines riesling’, now identifiable to so many of our clients.”
From the winery about this vintage: “Good winter rainfall and a wet Spring meant kick off to the 2017/18 season was a little slow. It also meant that access to certain parts of the vineyard was impossible until they dried out. November was magnificently warm, and the growth raced ahead. Flowering was warm and very still which lead to a magnificent fruit set across varieties.
Vintage was early, in spite of our highest yields in a decade. We had warm, dry conditions throughout, which made for extremely easy (and generally fast) picking. Both Cabernet and Cabernet Franc were picked earlier than much of the Riesling and had an average Beaume of about 13.5!!! Acids were generally high and of course, given the early season, had a good whack of Malic in the earlier picks. We had a very decent amount of rain shortly after finishing in the 3rd week of April. A combination of crushed and whole bunch fruit was used for the press stage of this wine, as was a combination of inoculated and natural fermentation. Roughly 3 months on gross lees was seen across all ferments prior to racking and sulphur addition.
Blossom and citrus notes abound in this wine, both on the nose and the palate. These elements, coupled with stone-like, mineral overtones and grapefruit pith makes for a delicious, complex mouthful. The time on lees helps create a textural palate and lively acidity aids length and balance. “
Reviews:
“Sorta young vines, with plantings from 2010 and 2000 used for this wine. Crawford River should be on any riesling lovers radar, though I suspect it already is well and truly. All the florals, all the citrus fruits, flinty, tangy, pithy and pristine. It shows great velocity through the palate, pinpoint accuracy too, zestiness, a mouth-puckering and refreshing finish. It’s summery as it is elegant and unevolved, a svelte, whooshing thrust of riesling with fine detail in tow. Deliciousness is a by-word. No brainer for anyone who loves lively, energetic, refreshing white wines, with a touch of class.94 pts” – Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)
“Not such young vines really, but this label has its own identity now. Partial whole bunch press is used, and about 3 months on lees. This is typically the softest, most forward Crawford River Riesling, but still imbued with lively lemon zest and lime characters and slatey acidity. Some fullness and sweetness of fruit through the palate adds to its drink-now appeal.95 pts” – Steven Creber (Halliday Wine Companion)
RRP $36 LAST BOTTLES OF THIS VINTAGE Our Price $31.99
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