2025 Vintage:
The lead up to the 2025 vintage was notable for 2024 being the driest year on record in South Australia, as well as being the third-warmest year since records began in 1838. With
little rain to speak of it was clear that the 2025 vintage would demand judicious irrigation and careful management of supplemental water to achieve quality crops. From budburst
there were clear indicators of the potential for a bumper harvest, but hopes were dashed in late September when a catastrophic frost annihilated the early spring growth across much of the Clare and Eden Valleys. While initially devastating, the timing of this frost event played into our favour as we watched the vines bounce back with secondary budburst. The second crop was significantly smaller than the primary, but with limited water supply and no rain in sight, this allowed our growers to curate dense, healthy canopies with remarkable quality fruit from minimal water input. Summer temperatures were well above the long-term average leading to early harvests across South Australia. Rieslingfreak commenced picking on the 10th of February, with all
the fruit received into the winery by the end of the month. For a year that is marked by hot and dry conditions, the intensity of flavour and electric acidity in the 2025 Rieslings is both
remarkable and incredibly exciting. While the quantity of wine produced from the vintage may be meagre, the quality certainly cannot be questioned.
2025 Rieslingfreak No.2 Polish Hill River Riesling:
Sourced from the Polish Hill River vineyard, situated 5km South-East of the Clare township. The vineyard is owned by Rob and Lyn Jaeschke, who purchased the vineyard
from Penfolds in 2010. The vineyard is planted on grey-brown loam based soils, over sandy limestone and shale rock. The Riesling vines are approximately 15 years old, planted on
40 year old root stock. Polish Hill River was especially hard-hit but the September frost, with crops being reduced
by over 70% in the Jaeschke vineyard. While fruit was scarce and the resulting wine volume meagre, the quality and regional expression of the 2025 No.2 is second to none. The bouquet is highly perfumed with aromas of fresh green apple, jasmine, and pomelo, with a hints of passionflower and fresh lime juice. The palate is crisp yet silky-soft, with a fine, talc-like minerality imparting a pleasing slipperiness to the texture in the mouth. The bright flavours of Granny Smith apple and yuzu run a fine line between sweet and tart, while the elegant
and complex palate is punctuated with an electric line of acidity, imparting exceptional length and a clean, crisp finish.
