2025 Freycinet Riesling, Bicheno

Pale straw in the glass with aromas of grapefruit, green apple and citrus along with hints of clover blossom, pressed wildflowers, apple sorbet, crushed riverstone, sea breeze and distant notes of soft spice and ozone. Lime rolls in on the palate with a sheen of grapefruit pith texture, all wrapped up with a stony acid line and some lovely focus on the exit.

94 points Special Value Dave Brookes winecompanion.com.au

From granite and dolerite soils near Bicheno on Tasmania’s east coast, this Riesling captures the purity and tension that cool maritime climates do so well. Freycinet Vineyard benefits from long daylight hours, cold nights and steady ocean influence, allowing fruit to ripen slowly while retaining piercing natural acidity. Under winemakers Claudio Radenti and Lindy Bull, the focus is precision and vineyard expression, shaping a Riesling that feels linear, mineral and quietly powerful rather than overtly showy.

Winemaking is deliberately restrained, using stainless steel fermentation to preserve freshness and highlight the vineyard’s natural structure. There is no oak influence, just clean fruit, acid and texture working in balance. The style leans classical and age worthy, built around tension rather than softness.

Pale straw in colour with green flashes, the aromas are tight and focused, opening with lime zest, lemon blossom and green apple, followed by wet stone and a faint floral lift. The palate is light to medium bodied and razor sharp, with citrus fruit wrapped in electric acidity and a chalky mineral finish that carries long and clean. Flavours of lime juice, grapefruit and apple skin linger with impressive persistence.

It shines with oysters, sashimi, grilled fish and Asian influenced dishes where acidity cuts through richness. Drinking beautifully now for its snap and clarity, it will cellar confidently for ten to fifteen years, developing toast and honeyed complexity while holding its mineral spine.

This is Tasmanian Riesling in a disciplined coastal register, precise, saline and built for the long haul.