Knappstein and St Hallett flourish in World of Fine Wine Riesling tasting

The World of Fine Wine publication can be counted on to get beyond the glossy label, past the story, and straight to the heart of the matter - the quality of the wine.

In their latest Australian Riesling tasting, Gerard Basset MS MW,Alex Hunt and Margaret Rand cast their tongues and considerable wine brains over a selection of Australia's finest. In the final analysis, St Hallett and Knappstein come up trumps, with both featuring in Basset's list of top wines and the Knappstein in Hunt's.

Here's what they had to say:

2007 Knappstein Hand Picked Riesling, Clare Valley

Gerard Basset: "Day-bright, medium green-yellow. Fairly pronounced apple, pear, and apricot. Crisp and tonic, green apple and wildflowers in the mouth. Well-balanced, medium-long finish. Very appealing. 16.5"

Alex Hunt: "Quite generous stone-fruit and orange aromas, and on the palate, round and fullflavored, with some mineral poise and lovely balance and integration of fruit with acidity. Long, tapered finish. 15"

2007 St Hallett Riesling Eden Valley

Gerard Basset: "Brilliant, medium silver-yellow. Extremely pronounced, candied tangerine, tarragon, and papaya. Lively and juicy; great flavors of tropical fruit and wild spices; long finish. 17"

There were also good reviews for several other of our wines:

2007 Howard Park Riesling Great Southern

Gerard Basset: "Brilliant, light pale yellow. Extremely pronounced appley nose, complemented by lovely mineral notes. Lean but still fresh and crisp; well-balanced flavors; medium finish. Fairly elegant. 15"

2007 Petaluma Hanlin Hill Riesling Clare Valley

Margaret Rand: "Honeyed, mineral wine, quite earthy, ripe, and peachy. There's the merest shadow of alcohol on the palate but not enough to spoil it. A good, flavorsome match for many foods. 15.5"