2021 Hanlin Hill Riesling, Petaluma

This is Clare Valley Riesling with a blade of brightness and a long, mineral heartbeat. From Petaluma’s revered Hanlin Hill vineyard, it opens with lime zest, green apple, mandarin and nashi pear, followed by jasmine, cherry blossom, crushed slate and a faint almond note. It is aromatic, precise and beautifully charged, with that unmistakable Clare Valley combination of citrus intensity and cool, stony restraint.

The palate is dry, focused and energetic, with powerful lime fruit, crisp acidity and a fine, flinty line running right through the finish. There is texture too, a little orchard-fruit generosity and a subtle savoury edge that keeps it from feeling too sharp or simple. It is gorgeous now for its freshness and perfume, but there is enough structure here to develop beautifully with careful cellaring.

For when you want white wine with electricity, elegance and a serious sense of place.
Pairs with oysters, crab, scallops, salt and pepper squid, Thai green curry, sushi, roast pork, or goat’s cheese.

Petaluma is one of Australia’s modern classics, founded in 1976 on a “distinguished vineyards” philosophy: matching the right grape to the right region and letting site lead the style. Hanlin Hill is central to that story. Planted in 1968 and sitting around 500 metres above sea level in the eastern hills of the Clare Valley, the vineyard’s slate geology, cool nights and sunny days help produce Riesling with high natural acidity, rich citrus flavour, flinty austerity and remarkable longevity. Hanlin Hill Riesling is one of Clare Valley’s most revered vineyards, and it remains a benchmark for precise, ageworthy Australian Riesling.