Grosset, 'Springvale' Clare Valley Riesling
Country: Australia Region: South Australia Vintage: 2022
Category: White Wine Color: White
Producer: Grosset
"For over 36 years, the Grosset Springvale and Polish Hill Rieslings have shown a consistency of style and quality that has made this one of Australia's greatest wineries.
The 'hard rock' blue slate of the Polish Hill site results in wines that are steely and magnificently age-worthy, while the red loam of the Springvale vineyard gives more open and easily accessible – if no less complex – wines. Such is Jeffrey Grosset's attention to detail that he noted a small strip (22 metres wide by 300 metres long) in his Springvale vineyard that produced more generously flavoured wines due to a different soil. As a result, he decided to produce a different wine from this site, Alea, which adds to his great canon of Rieslings.
As the story of Alea illustrates, Jeffrey is fanatical about the quality of his vineyards, all of which are certified organic and are hand-tended. In the winery, each process is gentle and uncomplicated. No finings are used and sulphur is the only addition. By combining a disciplined approach and decades of experience, Grosset consistently achieves the purest expression of variety and place.
Fascinated by the art of blending, Jeff has trialled shiraz-based wines for years, resulting in the newly released Nereus. With just a small amount of Nero d'Avola, it has touch of perfume and freshness, with generous bramble and savoury overtones. It joins the Apiana - a blend of Fiano and Semillon - and his precise and pure Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc, with the latter variety sourced from his Adelaide Hills site, adding an aromatic dimension to the Clare Valley grown Semillon. His Gaia remains one of Australia's best Cabernet blends, while the Pinot Noir is scented, supple and alluring.
Jeffrey's keen interest in distilling led him to make Grosset45, a unique spirit made from distilled Riesling wine. No botanicals, flavours or colours were used, resulting in a pure, clean spirit which reflects the character and aromas of the variety."
Product Features: Certified Organic
Winemaker: Jeffrey Grosset and Brent Treloar
Vineyards:
The hilltop sited 'Springvale' is the highest (460 metres) and coolest vineyard in the Watervale sub-region. Planted on red loam over limestone, for which this area is renowned, this is a 'soft rock' site. This highly sustaining combination of soil and rock insulates the drought sensitive Riesling vines, which produce lime-green fruit with medium sized berries and fuller bunches. 'Springvale' is named after the original property where Riesling vines were first planted in the 1860s.
Vinification:
All vines were hand pruned, shoot thinned and fruit thinned where necessary and inoculated with neutral yeast only to maintain focus on natural fruit characters and expression of site. Fermentation took place in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks over two weeks. There was no skin contact and only the free-run juice was used.
Tasting Notes:
Springvale has attractive lemon blossom aromatics with a hint of chalkiness. It is intensely dry in its youth, showing generous lime and lemongrass flavours with mineral notes. The finish is dry, vibrant and long. It is given neat balance by its tight structure, purity and clean acidity.
Food Suggestion: Perfect with grilled calamari, white fish or roast chicken salad.
Closure: Stelvin ABV:12.7% Acidity [g/l]: 7.3
