Riesling aficionados from far and wide gathered at Howard Park Winery, Margaret River on Saturday 6th October for the second annual International Riesling Tasting & Lunch.
Our Howard Park Premium Wine Club members were joined by New York based wine experts Mary Ewing-Mulligan MW and Ed McCarthy, The Adelaide Review’s Nick Stock and local wine critics Ray Jordan, John Jens and Max Veenhuyzen.
The group blind tasted 21 super premium Rieslings of the 2005 vintage from Australia, New Zealand, Austria, France and Germany, including those from Franz Kunstler, Josmeyer, FX Pichler, Seppelt, Petaluma, Leo Buring, Grosset, Frankland Estate and Howard Park, just to name a few.
It was an opportunity for avid Riesling fans to sample some of the world’s finest Rieslings, which Jancis Robinson describes in the Oxford Companion to Wine to be “the most noble of all the white wine grapes.”
In addition, the event presented an avenue for the global exchange of opinions about the particular Riesling regions and the 2005 vintage characteristics of the wines in focus. Nick Stock from The Adelaide Review had this to say about the tasting: “The wines were stellar. Riesling at it’s prism-like, stellar, crystalline best!”
Guests were challenged to rate their top wines from the tasting and Howard Park proved it’s enviable position in this line up as our Riesling was voted in the top five by our interstate and international wine experts and consumer guests. Mary Ewing-Mulligan described the Howard Park Riesling as “a trim beauty” and voted it very highly - 19.25 points out of 20.
The tasting was followed by an afternoon of fine wine, first-class food and fabulous music. Simon Beaton from the Food Farmacy prepared a celebratory five course gourmet lunch to accompany the new vintage Howard Park wines including the 2007 Riesling and 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot while The Zydecats provided an upbeat stream of root-flavoured musical entertainment.
The third annual Howard Park International Riesling Tasting & Lunch will be held in early October 2008.
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