THE BONELINE HELLBLOCK RIESLING 2024

Winery notes (2024 Vintage)
"Brilliant pale green-gold with flashes of silver in the glass. The nose is finely detailed, opening with apple blossom, honeysuckle, and mandarin zest, underpinned by a subtle mineral edge that speaks to its limestone-rich gravels. The palate is vibrant and layered, showing flavours of lime oil, ripe red apple, fleshy stone fruit, and tangerine peel. A bright line of acidity drives freshness, beautifully balanced by a touch of generous fruit sweetness. The interplay of these two elements is accentuated by a gentle natural spritz retained from fermentation, adding lift and energy through the mid-palate. The finish is long and persistent, leaving a crisp, cleansing texture and a lingering echo of citrus and minerality. This is a Riesling of tension, precision, and purity — a vibrant expression of its vineyard and season.

Our estate-grown grapes are hand-harvested and whole-bunch pressed gently over several hours to extract pure, delicate juice. The must is settled overnight, then racked off the gross solids, retaining only the fluffy lees to preserve freshness and finesse. Fermentation proceeds slowly at low temperatures, allowing flavour and texture to build naturally. It is stopped when the sugar, acid, alcohol, and phenolics reach perfect harmony. The wine is then held at a cool temperature to retain a fine natural CO₂ spritz from primary fermentation, enhancing vibrancy and lift. Following fermentation, the wine is racked and aged on fine lees for six months before bottling, developing subtle texture and length while maintaining its bright, energetic character."

Reviews for the 2023 vintage below…

Rated Excellent & 94/100 Cameron Douglas MS, March 2025 (2023 Vintage)
"Lifted, fruity, varietal and nicely complex bouquet centering on aromas of orange and mandarin peel, white rose and apple flesh. There’s also a core of minerality with wet pebbles or river stone scents. An off-dry wine touches the palate with the residual sweetness immediately contrasted by acidity and core fruit flavour intensity. Apples and orange, mandarin and lime flavours. Well made, balanced and ready to drink from day of purchase through 2033."

90/100 Erin Larkin, RobertParker.com, December 2024 (2023 Vintage)
"The 2023 Hellblock Riesling is sweet and viscose, with a bitter edge of green lime and kaffir leaf in the mouth. The weave is loose, like raw linen, and there is a real textural weight, with great persistence of flavour. I love the very finish of this wine; it lingers and appears fresher the longer it is there. The initial attack of residual sugar and firm acidity is a lot to digest, and only when they fade does the wine make more sense. Serving this quite cold could help to clean up the quibbles I have about the integration of acidity and residual sugar."