Cooter & Cooter Riesling 2025
Regular price $25.00
Unit price per
The 2025 vintage in Watervale, Clare Valley was shaped by an exceptionally dry and warm growing season, with rainfall around half the long-term average. Low soil moisture, combined with a severe frost event in late September, resulted in significantly reduced yields across the region. A secondary budburst mitigated losses in some sites and produced small crops of highly concentrated fruit. Riesling was harvested early in a compressed vintage window, with warm days and cool nights preserving natural acidity while driving flavour intensity. The resulting wines are highly aromatic and precise.
Fruit was de-stemmed and gently pressed, with free-run juice kept separate from pressings. Fermentation commenced slowly at cool temperatures before proceeding steadily at 12–14 °C over 20 days on full solids to build aromatic detail and texture. The two vineyard parcels and pressings were vinified separately throughout fermentation. A small portion of pressings was blended back prior to bottling to add subtle palate weight and complexity. The wine was retained on lees until final filtration and bottling. Dry, with 1.34g/L RS; 11.5 % Alc/Vol; 6.2 TA; 3.05 pH.
Lifted aromas of lime blossom, lemon zest and rose petal, underpinned by wet stone and chalky minerality. The palate is delicate and precise, with bright lemon-lime acidity and a long, focused finish. Elegant and poised, this is a classic Watervale Riesling with strong ageing potential.
Cooter & Cooter is a family business and the logo reflects the connection between the generations of winemakers. The cursive script has been used by various Cooter businesses since 1847.
In 1992 Colin Cooter created Lengs & Cooter with Karel Lengs and in 2012 Colin’s son James established Cooter & Cooter with his wife Kimberly. A winemaker herself, Kimberly began learning her craft under the tutelage of her father, veteran McLaren Vale winemaker Walter Clappis. Walter is best known for his much celebrated time running Ingoldby Wines and more recently, The Hedonist Wines.
In 2005 James and Kimberly spent a year working in California’s Sonoma Valley then, invigorated by their experience, they returned to Australia to continue making wine at The Hedonist. Finally in 2012, now with over 20 vintages between them, they purchased their own vineyard at Whites Valley near Willunga in McLaren Vale. The vineyard, with views to the coast just a few kilometres away, features Grenache vines planted in the 1950s, along with Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon vines planted in 1996.