Capel Vale Whispering Hill Riesling 2007 ($27.95)
Things have been a’changing at Capel Vale. There’s been a uniform lift in the quality of wine across the board, the introduction of the exceptional “Debut” range and the winery’s logo has been given a modern, fresh new look that mirrors the brand’s own tale: moving forwards whilst still respecting its history. A story also embodied by this wine, drawing on the Pratten family’s old-vine holdings in the state’s cool Mt Barker region. While masochists might enjoy the brute force of high-powered riesling and its cutlasses of lively acidity, I’m enjoying tasting riesling later rather than sooner as it lets the wine settle down a tad and give those subtle palate nuances more of a chance to shine. In this case, it’s a gently acidic mouthful of clear-cut lemon and lime flavours delivered with elegance, poise and softness. Everything is looking remarkably balanced and the wine finishes dry and clean with a burst of lime and citrus succulence. Refreshingly cleansing and seemingly tailor-made for this God-awful hot spell being suffered by us good West Australians – I wish I had more bottles of this in the fridge over the past eight weeks. 17. www.capelvale.com
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