Bellwether Ant Series Riesling 2019

The 2018 Riesling is sourced from the Bundaleera vineyard in the Tamar Valley. The Bandaleera Vineyard is a 2ha that Sue describes “as a warm site in a very cool place”. The grower Rob Bennet and his wife have been looking after the vineyard for over 20 years and Sue has been buying fruit here since then.

All grapes are handpicked in whole bunches in the early morning to retain freshness and purity and are then transported to the farm in small crates. This is to prevent the grapes from being crushed or create any micro-biological spoilage.  All bunches are whole bunched pressed in the winery at Bundaleera, but are transported to the Bellwether Shearing Shed in Coonawarra to finalize the cuvee. Once the juice has arrived in Coonawarra, two thirds of the juice is transferred in to old puncheons and left on full solids for 9 months.  The rest of the juice is transferred into breathable tanks to promote micro-oxidation which leads to a beautiful texture and weight in the final wine. The wine has not been cold stabilized as Sue thinks this strips out flavour and texture so all bottles have a little precipitate at the bottom.

A great example of a textural Tasmanian Riesling. Crystaline natural acidity with a load of lemon myrtle and grapefruit pith with green apple notes. A lovely rounded mouthfeel and almost waxy texture surrounded by white blossom flowers with a persistent finis