Pegasus Bay Estate Riesling – Perfect Riesling art from New Zealand’s South Island

The Pegasus Bay Estate Riesling comes from a site in the Waipara Valley in North Canterbury. The vineyard is situated on free-draining, north-facing terraces. It benefits from being in the lee of the Teviotdale Mountains, which provides maximum protection from the easterly Pacific breezes, creating a unique mesoclimate. The vines are over 35 years old, with a large proportion planted on their own roots (ungrafted). They are planted on the Glasnevin Gravels, where greywacke stones, silt and clay have been washed down from the mountains over thousands of years. The soil is poor, so that the vines are naturally less vigorous. This leads to low yields of optimally ripened, high-quality and flavourful grapes that fully express the qualities of this unique terroir. The vineyard is influenced by many warm days, but the nights are among the coolest in the Waipara Valley. This extends the ripening time of the grapes and at the same time maintains a good natural acidity.

The Donaldson Family, founders of Pegasus Bay, pioneered the Waipara Valley wine region in North Canterbury on New Zealand’s South Island 40 years ago. Today, the name Pegasus Bay stands for one of the most renowned New Zealand wineries and always convinces with outstanding wines. North Canterbury is an ideal playground for Riesling, making it possible to produce concentrated wines. The wines generally have a pleasant acidity and finesse. The Pegasus Riesling house style consists of processing a few grapes with noble rot (Botrytis Cinerea). After the harvest, the juice was fermented slowly at cool temperatures to express the unique character of the region and the vineyard. The wine was treated very carefully and gently at all stages of production in order to retain a little of its natural carbon dioxide. This has given the Pegasus Bay Estate Riesling 2022 a subtle effervescence that lends the wine additional vibrancy.

And this is how the Pegasus Bay Estate Riesling tastes

The Pegasus Bay Estate Riesling beguiles with a complex firework of citrus fruits, tropical notes and perfume, underlaid with mineral flavours. Hints of grapefruit, lychee, green apple and lime sorbet are accompanied by subtle notes of rose petals and an intriguing hint of flint. On the palate, this Riesling from New Zealand is crisp and full of energy, the juicy, fresh fruit is supported by a fine acidity that perfectly balances the dry finish. A well-structured, very elegant wine with a long finish that tempts you to pour more.