Riddoch The Federator 2022
- 95
- $100
- Drink by: 2025-2045
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The Riddoch Estate in Coonawarra has released an Icon wine, the Federator – which sounds a bit like a combination of a great tennis player and a second rate superhero (apparently, back in 1887, a train which travelled between Adelaide and Melbourne was known as the Federator, which travelled through John Riddoch’s land). Fortunately, it drinks like a first rate wine. The vines supplying the fruit range between twenty and twenty-five years of age. 70% is from their northeast block, in the warmer part of Coonawarra, 10% from another terra rosa vineyard and the remainder is from the Riddoch Estate, a co-fermented blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. The wine spends fifteen months in a mix of new and older oak. Just 3,060 bottles available. An inky dark maroon hue, this is wonderfully aromatic and classically Coonawarra. This is rich, well structured, and offering notes of cloves, blackberries, chocolate, black olives, espresso, mint and graphite. There is still a degree of austerity in these early days, as well as good intensity and a lovely, lingering finish. Very fine and yet firm tannins, the wine has excellent length and promises to deliver immense pleasure for the next twenty years. Love it.
Ken was born and bred in Brisbane, Queensland. He had a non-trendy, perfectly happy childhood, in a family convinced alcohol meant instant condemnation to Hades. But a break fishing on the Great Barrier Reef, and some good wine, started a serious obsession that eventually took over. It did not stop Ken being chastised later for drinking Pol champagne, disgusted he’d drink anything made by a Cambodian dictator. Now, Ken mostly writes on wine, champagne and spirits for various newspapers, magazines and books, but is perhaps best known for his work in The Courier Mail. He also has a little sideline writing on cigars, fishing, travel and food. When not writing, fly-fishing for trout in NZ or bonefish on the flats of Cuba, travelling or smoking cigars, he is no doubt following a variety of sporting teams – the occasionally glorious Queensland Reds rugby, the dysfunctional Washington Redskins, the dodgy Arsenal and especially revels in the world restored to its proper axis with the return of the Ashes to their rightful home.
