2021 WELLINGTON & WOLFE EYLANDT RESERVE RIESLING

Matured 5 months in 4+yo French oak barrels with bâtonnage, 25% mlf. The fragrant, spicy elegance of the cool 2021 season in Piper’s River is electric, and it’s testimony to Hugh McCullough’s dexterity that he’s successfully deployed every trick in the book to achieve balance, without for a moment interrupting purity or crystalline linearity. A few hours of skin contact and cool fermentation (12 degrees) energise kaffir lime, Granny Smith apple and lemon fruit accented with white pepper. Texture and body derive equally from maturation and bâtonnage, mlf and 35g/L RS. Huge potential. Tyson Stelzer, 94 points