Galafrey 2009 Dry Land Riesling (4.5* $20) Pale straw in the glass, with a nose that fuses floral, mineral and citrus notes is lifted with a delicate fusion of floral jasmine, mineral and citrus with a whiff of petrol (at three years old I'd be looking for that and would be disappointed to find it wasn't there). Dry grown fruit delivers a palate that continues the elements you pick up on the nose's into a lengthy finish. Elegant, vibrant and balanced with all the lime and stone fruit notes you could want, this one underlines the extreme value for money you can obtain from Australian Riesling, with Great Southern adding itself of the number of regions I'm looking towards for what's undoubtedly my favourite wine variety. This one would probably go on for several years and develop into an utter charmer, but the charms are such that the box is just about gone.
Pertaringa 2009 McLaren Vale Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre (4.5* $30) Savoury nose, ruby red in the glass, medium-bodied, food-friendly with abundant red fruit through the nostrils and across the palate, a rounded mouthfeel and silky tannins that run through a lengthy finish. It's the thirty-plus year old winery's first go at the increasingly fashionable blend and they've pretty much nailed it. Should handle medium-term cellaring, but with only five bottles left it's not likely to last much beyond winter 2012.
Pfeiffer 2011 Riesling (4* $18.90) Pale straw in the glass, varietal nose with plenty of zesty lime across the palate along with a crisp, clean finish this mightn't be right up there with the best Australian Rieslings (insert your favourite Riesling region here) but it's not far off them. While I enjoyed this one, the sheer weight of incoming styles from Clare and Great Southern rules out any possibility of a reorder, hence the 4*. Halliday, incidentally, gave it a 92.
