The Dr. Edge ‘Tasmania’ Riesling comes from two sites, one in the south (Meadowlark vineyard in the Derwent Valley) and the east (Freycinet Vineyard). In 2021, the wine was made in exactly the same way as the ‘Tasmania’ Chardonnay, with the idea being that adding whole clusters during fermentation and aging would help with the aging process. Peter Dredge says that most Rieslings are a race to market, but he thinks that Tasmanian Rieslings in particular need time to mellow out so that they don’t “taste like a glass of acid reflux.” The whole-clusters through texture, flavor, and drinkability, and the nine months on the lees help to relax the razor sharp acidity. Like with all of the Dr. Edge wines, Peter likes to focus on blends of sites to really encapsulate the entirety of the vintage across Tasmania. Plus, this way, he gets to play with the percentages of each block to bring out the elements he desires, which are consistently drive, energy, and texture.
The grapes were hand picked then whole-bunch pressed straight to old French oak barriques. Every four barrels, about 10% whole clusters were left un-pressed to soak with the juice. Those clusters stayed there through spontaneous fermentation and the nine months of aging on the lees. It was bottled unfined with a gentle cross-flow filtration and a 70 ppm sulfur addition.