Spinifex’s Rostein vineyard is home to two parcels of ancient Riesling, one planted in 1945 and the other in 1956. These parcels produce minuscule yields for Riesling—a paltry 0.8-tonnes per acre is the norm—resulting in wines of atypical concentration and power. 2015 was the first Spinifex harvest from Rostein, yet the wines have been previously been released (discreetly) as single-vineyard Eden Valley.
This is the inaugural release under the Estate label as it’s the first wine to reach the heights for which Pete Schell was aiming. It comes predominantly from the oldest vines (from 1945, surely some of Australia’s oldest Riesling vines!) and was hand-picked in three passes over a week. The wine was then fermented naturally and aged on lees for 11 months in 1,000-litre neutral oak and, was even allowed to go through partial malo. It was then bottled unfiltered after 16 months. In other words: this is anything but your garden variety SA Riesling!