Best’s Great Western Foudre Ferment Riesling 2023

Yes, oak was involved in the making of this ground-breaking Aussie Riesling, first produced in 2012. No, you won’t taste oak in the wine. What you do experience is something that mingles between the exotic, the floral, the citrussy and the textural, exploring the broad canvas that is modern Riesling. English country garden and wildflower scents with green apple, lime peel, citrus and a light dusting of herbs. Immediately, it’s recognisably Riesling but more complex in scope. Wild fermentation in seasoned, 2500L Austrian and French foudre brings all manner of flavour depth and waxy textural appeal to the palate, all nicely offset by concentrated lemon, lime zest, apple and spice. Acidity is perky and bright but never intrusive. Love the touch of grip to this wine, yet another totally enjoyable point of difference.

Jeni Port

Wine critic at Winepilot

Jeni Port is one of Australia’s top wine communicators. Based in Melbourne, Jeni created the first wine column in the (then) Sun News-Pictorial before moving over to The Age and becoming that paper’s longest-serving wine writer. Over the years she has written for most Australian wine magazines and these days calls WinePilot home. She is also a Tasting Panel member on the Halliday Wine Companion. She was named Wine Communicator of the Year and Legend of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in 2014 and in 2018 Legend of the Vine. She is a founding board member of Australian Women In Wine and is the co-deputy chair of Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards and China’s Wine List of the Year Awards.

Wine writer and critic