2008 Howard Park Riesling Tasting Notes

A dry winter in 2007 was followed by some unusually cold spring weather in October which combined to reduce cropping levels. A benign late spring and early summer allowed for even and clean fruit development and harvest of Riesling began in early March.

The 2008 season has delivered us fine and linear Riesling fruit flavours: lime juice and some white flowers from Mount Barker and tight minerally and lime skin characters from the Porongurups. A small component of Frankland Riesling of outstanding structure and acidity was included for the first time.

The fruit upon arrival at the winery was immediately processed to ensure the highest quality juice. Only free run juice, which is tighter and more finely structured as it has no phenolic character, was used for this wine.

Most batches showed wonderfully restrained Riesling aromatics, fine elegant fruit and great length. We kept 15 individual batches separate which were cool fermented in stainless steel tanks to maintain the delicate fruit flavours. 

Extensive blending trials of the free run batches were carried out to produce a wine that is very elegant but still powerful.

The wine is a very pale straw in colour with pronounced green hues on the rim. The nose shows lime juice, granite and floral notes hinting of apple blossom and jasmine. The palate has great focus and purity of fruit with a pithy lime and mineral texture balanced by clean acidity. The intense lime fruit characters drive through the finish which is tightly wound yet lingering with floral and wet stone hints.

This wine has been made with an eye to cellaring and so it will greatly reward the patient enthusiast. Secondary characters will start to develop after three years and will continue to add complexity to this wine for at least ten years. The 2008 is one of the best vintages for the Howard Park Riesling.