Clare Valley Riesling named Australia’s wine of the year

A single vineyard, barrel fermented aged riesling from the Clare Valley has been named Australia’s wine of the year at a new major international wine show.

Mitchell McNicol Riesling 2008 was awarded a double gold medal with 96 points and named Wine of the Year by country at the Sommeliers Choice Awards in San Francisco.

Wines entered in the Sommeliers Choice Awards were tasted and assessed by more than 20 U.S. wine industry professionals. “The idea of Sommeliers Choice Awards is to put the best judges forward to evaluate the best on-premise wines for the consumers,” said Sid Patel, CEO of event organiser Beverage Trade Network.

The grapes for the McNicol Riesling are grown without irrigation nor exposure to herbicides or pesticides. The wine is fermented with natural, indigenous yeasts in a 3000 Litre French oak foudre and aged on its lees in the barrel for 12 months. After 10 years of bottle age the wine shows intense spice, citrus fruit with a long lingering mineral palate.

While the McNicol Riesling 2008 has sold out in Australia, the 2009 vintage is currently available (RRP $45) and has been awarded 96 points by James Halliday.

“This is a delicious wine, with a golden yellow hue inflected with lime at the edges as a paean to the joys of mid-life,” Halliday wrote in the 2017 edition of his vinaceous bible the James Halliday Wine Companion. “This is a far more spicy, complex, richer Germanic take than the stainless steel Clare Valley norm, yet the Clare's lime spice notes remain unmistakable."

The Sommeliers Choice Awards attracted hundreds of international entries, and were judged by top sommeliers, wine buyers and directors from some of the USA’s most acclaimed restaurants. The McNicol Riesling 2008 was one of only four wines to be awarded a double gold at the 2019 event, while the McNicol Shiraz 2008 was awarded a gold medal and 94 points.

“We are thrilled to again be recognised for our riesling and for the halo effect these sorts of award have on the Clare Valley as a world class riesling-producing region,” said Mitchell Wines’ General Manager, Angus Mitchell.

“For the shiraz to also win gold and be awarded 94 points – one of only five wines to receive that score - is icing on the cake.”