Description
Siblings Matt and Janelle Swinney have created something very special in the Frankland River region of the Great Southern in WA. The vineyards are part of remote and isolated 2,500 (approx. 6,000 acres) hectare grape growing and grazing property which has been the home of the Swinney family for four generations.
George John Alexander Swinney was a pioneer of the Frankland River Region and settled at ‘Franklands’ in 1922. The ‘Franklands’ property sit on ironstone gravel hill tops above the Frankland River and produce wines that have a distinctly ferrous character – a character strongly associated with the highest quality Frankland River fruit.
Bush vine viticulture is their passion and, with the right site selection and varieties, produces some of the most site-specific fruit you will see. Growing vines this way is labour intensive and requires a lot of dedication and patience – everything must be done by hand, but the lower yield and greater effort is worth the effort! Low-yielding and growing naturally without trellising, bush vines are a rarity in Western Australia and exemplify the Swinney’s long term commitment to producing wines that are a true expression of their unique sites and variety and in as natural and unforced manner as possible.
Winemaker, Rob Mann (grandson of the legendary Jack Mann—the godfather of Western Australian wine)– joined the Swinney team in 2018, whose philosophy is simple—to reflect and preserve the personality of each individual vineyard site. To achieve this, we harvest by hand—often with multiple passes over the same vine—fruit and berry sort and co-ferment where possible.
“There is no question that this vineyard and the style being crafted under one of Australia’s finest winemakers, Rob Mann, have redefined syrah and grenache. These are now the established benchmarks and should be on the buy-now list for anyone with an interest in contemporary Australian wine.” Ray Jordan, The West Australian, 2021
When Matt and Janelle Swinney first decided to plant Grenache and Mourvèdre, many questioned their wisdom, saying the grapes wouldn’t ripen. As it turned out, under Swinney’s uncompromising management, this cool, ironstone pocket of Frankland River now looks like the promised land for these Mediterranean varieties.
Swinney was named 2020 Vineyard of the Year in the inaugural Young Gun of Wine Australian Vineyard of the Year Awards. “The scale of the vineyard, coupled with their pinpoint focus and pursuit of innovation, and the quality of the resulting wines, is truly extraordinary and inspiring”, the judges said.
About this wine: The key to understanding Swinney’s Riesling is to appreciate the farming. All blocks are organically dry-farmed, the vines are cane-pruned and the row orientation is north to south. The team uses shade cloth in the Riesling blocks to protect the bunches from excessive sun exposure and avoid any roasted character in the fruit. Such precise vineyard management goes some way to explaining the wine’s purity and transparency.
Rob Mann’s search for structure and texture reigns in the cellar. The fruit (from two of Swinney’s oldest blocks in Powderbark Vineyard) is pressed as bunches and ferments naturally in stainless steel with a high solids component. This “builds nuance and a saline core in the wine”, according to Mann. The wine then rests on lees in tank to preserve freshness and build texture before bottling.
Vintage 2024 came early. It was one of the hottest, driest years on record, so Swinney’s meticulous farming methods were more critical than ever in ensuring pristine Riesling fruit made it to Rob Mann in the cellar. Despite the atypical conditions, Mann tells us the season delivered fruit of “tremendous depth and intensity with balanced, high natural acidity”.
From the winemaker about this wine: “The nose is perfectly ripe with an intense combination of lemon pith, jasmine blossom, nectarine and green tea. Medium bodied on the palate, the wine carries a density of citrus fruit with touches of white peach and honeysuckle. Fine-boned. with a spine of pithy acidity, the wine is defined by its characteristic briny dry finish.”
Brand new release .. review for 2023 .. 96 points, Kasia Sobiesiak, The Wine Front “Happy lemons! Fresh lemonade, lemon slices with a sprinkle of sugar. A bright sunny day. No worries. It has a satin texture, like icing sugar made with, well, lemon juice. In other words, excellent balance of concentrated fruitiness and abundance of cool and smooth limey acidity. This drinks like a charm, it’s moreish, so positive it puts a smile on your face. A beam of sunlight, a cool drink in hand on a hot day. Melting in the mouth with a minty aftertaste and it’s feather-light too. It’s more than a sum of aromas and flavours, it’s liquid energy! Fantastic stuff.”
95 points, Mike Bennie, Halliday Wine Companion “Swinney Vineyard is a powerhouse of fine wine releases – no slouch from its 2023 Riesling here. While compact and racy, there’s a distinct savoury element, salted cashew or similar, set under the frisky lime and green apple crunch of fruit flavours. Great stuff, complexity writ large. Perfume is pretty, floral, but distinctly gingery and lemony, too. Among everything is a fine powderiness to the texture with a crackling, long, refreshing, acid-driven finish. Seamless all up, and drinkability is wicked. Dive in in its inimitable youth.
RRP $44 Our Special Price $36.50 when you buy 6 or more of this wine.
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