2023 Pegasus Bay Bel Canto Dry Riesling

"Bel Canto means 'Beautiful Singing'. Based on the estate's mature vines at Waipara, in North Canterbury, the extremely youthful 2023 vintage was 'hand-selected with a portion of botrytis'. Light lemon/green, it is a powerful, notably sturdy and weighty style of Riesling, with rich, peachy, lemony, vaguely honeyed flavours, showing excellent delicacy, harmony and length. Crisp and basically dry, it's built for the long haul."

"Very youthful, vibrant and pristine bouquet with its signature of honeysuckle and complexity from later picked fruit, lemon and white peach, apple and a layer of quince. Delicious on the palate finishing dry driven by a backbone of acidity and mouthfeel, and flavours of citrus and white fleshed orchard fruits before the honeysuckle and late pick characters fold back in. A wine that will age well and deliver exceptional value in years to come."

"Wow. I love the nose here on this 2023 Bel Canto Dry Riesling, with aromas of apricot kernel, jasmine flowers, honeysuckle, crushed sea shells, paraffin wax and lemon barley. In the mouth, the wine is powerful, weighty, intense and impactful. It has so much of everything, stonking power, depth of flavor and warmth from the alcohol—not a pejorative, but certainly part of the experience—the embodiment of all that is good at Pegasus Bay, as I see it. This is a tremendously good wine here."