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Swinney Riesling 2023

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Swinney Riesling 2023
Producer Swinney
Region, Country Frankland River, Australia
Bottle Size 750ml
Case Size 6
Product Code 22456-750

Vintage 2023 is, in the words of Rob Mann, “really exciting”. Conditions were ideal; cool and dry, with no prolonged heat spikes. The only downside was below-average yields owing to the dry conditions. As he is wont to do, Mann finds the silver lining, telling us the reduced crop levels meant fruit clarity, freshness and acidities were preserved.

The first key to understanding Swinney’s Riesling style is to appreciate the farming. All blocks are organic and dry-farmed, the vines are cane-pruned and the row orientation is north to south. The team uses shade cloth in the Riesling blocks, protecting the bunches from excessive sun exposure and avoiding any roasted character in the fruit. Such precise vineyard management goes some way to explaining the wine’s purity and transparency.

The second key is in the cellar, where Rob Manns’s search for structure and texture reigns supreme. The fruit (from two of Swinney’s oldest blocks in the Powderbark vineyard) is whole bunch-pressed and fermented with indigenous yeast in stainless steel with a high component of solids. This approach “builds nuance and a saline core in the wine”, according to Mann. He’s not looking for austerity, rather he is seeking something more textural and aromatic with flavour complexity and a high degree of fruit purity. In this, he’s nailed it; if you thought the 2022 was good, just wait.


Swinney Riesling 2023

Reviews

“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!”
96 points, Kasia Sobiesiak, The Wine Front
“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.”
95 points, Mike Bennie, The Wine Companion
“A very good mid-weighted wine that packs flavor, structure and punch, without the hardness and brittle acidity that can often be the bane of dry Aussie riesling. Composed and tense, with the strong aura of agability embedded in its structural latticework. Scents of mandarin skin, barley water, pink grapefruit and preserved lemon. A skein of acidity, salty and maritime, tows impressive length. A juicy, pithy punctuation at the finish. Impressive. Drink or better, hold for eight to 12 years. Screw cap.”
94 points, Ned Goodwin MW, jamessuckling.com
“Very pale lemon and lime tints through the glass. Lime zest and talcum aromas. Light and fresh as enters the palate with bright lime and lemon zest notes. A little sweetness fills in bringing an appealing softness to the drive of acidity. Good length and precision to the finish.”
93 points, Stuart Knox, The Real Review

Reviews

“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!”
96 points, Kasia Sobiesiak, The Wine Front
“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.”
95 points, Mike Bennie, The Wine Companion
“A very good mid-weighted wine that packs flavor, structure and punch, without the hardness and brittle acidity that can often be the bane of dry Aussie riesling. Composed and tense, with the strong aura of agability embedded in its structural latticework. Scents of mandarin skin, barley water, pink grapefruit and preserved lemon. A skein of acidity, salty and maritime, tows impressive length. A juicy, pithy punctuation at the finish. Impressive. Drink or better, hold for eight to 12 years. Screw cap.”
94 points, Ned Goodwin MW, jamessuckling.com
“Very pale lemon and lime tints through the glass. Lime zest and talcum aromas. Light and fresh as enters the palate with bright lime and lemon zest notes. A little sweetness fills in bringing an appealing softness to the drive of acidity. Good length and precision to the finish.”
93 points, Stuart Knox, The Real Review

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