Petaluma Hanlin Hill Clare Valley Riesling 2006
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The geology of the Hanlin Hill Vineyard is Mintaro shale, deposited as shallow marine sediments between 550 and 600 million years ago, and metamorphosed into high quality grey slate, which has weathered to form well draining, brown to red-brown clay rich soils.
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Wine Spectator
Crisp in texture and generous in flavor, a seductive mouthful of Bosc pear, white peach, lime and green tea flavours, lingering on the polished finish. This one has depth and distinctive character.
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Wine Enthusiast
Simultaneously floral and minerally on the nose, the 2006 Hanlin Hill Riesling is an all-around delight. Filled with apple, nectarine, melon and lime fruit, it manages to conceal the Clare Valley’s sometimes hard edges with ripe fruit. Finishes dusty, minerally and long; this should have a long, positive evolution.
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Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
The Clare Valley is actually a series of narrow north to south valleys, each with a different soil type and slightly different weather patterns along their stretch. In the southern heartland between Watervale and Auburn, there is mainly a crumbled, red clay loam soil called terra rossa and cool breezes come in from Gulf St. Vincent. A few miles north, in Polish Hill, is soft, red loam over clay; westerlies blowing in from the Spencer Gulf influece this area's climate.
The differences in soil, elevation, degree of slope and weather enable the region to produce some of Australia’s finest, aromatic, spicy and lime-pithy Rieslings, as well as excellent Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec with ripe plummy fruit, good acid and big structure.
Clare Valley is an isolated farming country with a continental climate known for its warm and sunny days, followed by cool nights—perfect for wine grapes’ development of sugar and phenolic ripeness in conjunction with notable acidity levels.