2025 Clonakilla Riesling

95 ptsHALLIDAY TOP 100
A tightly wound, cool-climate Riesling from one of Australia’s most consistent hands, made for drinking now or forgetting in the cellar.
4.7
Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars
14 Reviews

Price:
Sale price$33.00
Stock:
In stock, ready to ship
Rendering loop-subscriptions

Description

The Clonakilla Riesling flies a little under the radar next to its famous Shiraz Viognier sibling, but don’t let that fool you — this is one of the country’s great cool-climate whites. Sourced from the family’s estate vines in Murrumbateman, it’s all about precision, purity and refreshment. Year after year, it delivers.

2025 was another crisp, cool season up in the Canberra District, and that’s played straight into this wine’s strengths. Handpicked fruit, free-run juice, slow ferment — it’s a minimal intervention approach with a very clear end goal: clarity and drive. No tricks, no fluff, just clean acid line, layered citrus and that trademark chalky finish.

It’s drinking beautifully now, but if you’ve got the patience, a few years in the cellar will see this open up with even more texture and depth. That said, it’s so crisp and delicious out the gate you’d be forgiven for not waiting.

95 points & Top 100 Wines of the Year
"There are no harsh edges with the acidity, just a lovely sensation of talc and texture."
- Jane Faulkner (Halliday Wine Companion)

Aaron Brasher

Aaron Brasher

The Real Review 95 Points

Pale straw, bright in the glass and vibrant. Really pretty and lifted aromas of white flowers, lime leaf, lemon pith, bath salts, wet stone and lemon sherbet. Pithy, crunchy and deliciously mouth-watering. There’s lovely purity and drive, with lashings of perky citrus, tangy acidity and some shapely, chalky, textured grip on the finish. Classy wine!

Jane Faulkner

Jane Faulkner

Halliday Wine Companion 95 Points

Ah riesling – vintage barely done and dusted yet here you are in my glass. You’re a delight and delicious, even in this still-evolving stage; the patient will be rewarded, so pop some away in the cellar. Open it today and you’ll be greeted by a waft of lemon and lime blossom, waxy hoya flowers and plenty of citrus tang on the palate, with a distinct mandarin flavour. There are no harsh edges with the acidity, just a lovely sensation of talc and texture.

Campbell Mattinson

Campbell Mattinson

The Wine Front 94 Points

This is super young, obviously, but it has a weight and a power and it’s going to turn out to be something. It’s floral in an exotic way, shows notes of orange in with its general lemon-and-lime, and has a slate-like, tonic aspect tucked neatly into its core. This wine is still sorting itself out but presence, power and length are key features.

Erin Larkin

Erin Larkin

The Wine Advocate 94 Points

The 2025 Riesling is fleshy and yet tightly coiled, with notes of lime and apple alongside brine and scratched lemon zest. In the mouth, the wine is pure, chalky and almost austere. The texture is like stepping stones rather than a smooth path. It forces you to slow down and pay attention. It's really good. 12% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

Customer Reviews

4.7
Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars
Based on 14 reviews
Total 5 star reviews: 10 Total 4 star reviews: 4 Total 3 star reviews: 0 Total 2 star reviews: 0 Total 1 star reviews: 0
14 reviews
  • NW
    Nicholas W.
    Verified Buyer
    5 months ago
    Reviewing
    2024 Clonakilla Riesling
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Great riesling

    One of our favourites - a lovely balanced riesling that's perfect with Thai!

  • SC
    Simon C.
    Verified Buyer
    1 year ago
    Reviewing
    2023 Clonakilla Riesling
    Rated 4 out of 5 stars
    Crisp

    Crisp, dry riesling. Can't really go wrong with Clonakilla, no matter what vintage.

  • JB
    Jeremy B.
    Verified Buyer
    Wine Knowledge Level Cork Dork
    1 year ago
    Wine Knowledge Level Cork Dork
    Reviewing
    2023 Clonakilla Riesling
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Great bang for buck

    Tasty, citrus-forward Rizza from Clonakilla always goes down a treat. These wines are great with 5+ years bottle age if you. can keep them that long

The 2025 season was magnificent.

Good rain in late spring/early summer rain and consistent, steady warmth right through to mid-autumn.

The fruit came in pristine, intensely flavoured and perfectly balanced. Subtle florals, ripe apple and bright citrus notes.

Drink now or cellar with confidence. Watch lime and toast characters emerge with age.

Tim Kirk

Price Bracket $31 to $40
Type White
Body Light Bodied
Variety Riesling
Variety Style ["Dry Riesling"]
Country Australia
Region Canberra
Australian State NSW
Feature High Score
Reviewed By The Wine Front
The Real Review
Halliday Wine Companion
Critic Score 94
95
Alcohol 12%
Size 750ml
Vintage 2025
Closure Screw Cap

Clonakilla

Clonakilla is one of the true icons of the Australian wine scene. Since its inception, it has been one of the leading lights of the Australian cool climate wine insurgence.

They boast one of the most collectable wines in the country in their Shiraz Viognier, a wine of outstanding quality and consistency over the last two decades. Whether Shiraz, Riesling or otherwise, every wine in the Clonakilla stable are considered amongst the benchmark examples in Canberra District.

Quite simply, Tim Kirk and his family-owned estate are one of the true gems in the Australian wine industry crown.

Tim Kirk harvesting at Clonakilla Discover Clonakilla Wines

Others also liked

Recently viewed

Common Questions

Delivery is free on orders of $150 or more.

For orders under this amount, delivery is calculated at checkout based on your postcode. You can order in any quantity or combination of wines you like. Straight dozens are not required.

We will dispatch your order the same or next business day.

Estimated delivery transit time varies depending on your location. Please review this page for specific estimates.

No sorry we do not have a store front and pickup is not available.

Yes, no problem. When placing your order select ‘Store at Different Drop and Delivery Later’ as your shipping method or reply to the order confirmation email after placing your order with additional instructions.

We stock three different sized gift boxes (single, three bottle and six), all are available for purchase for a flat rate of $8. They look great and make an awesome impression.

To add a gift box to your order, simply add at checkout. The special requests box is your friend, please give us as many details of what you are looking for and we will try our best, or get in contact to discuss it with you. 

If you want to bulk order gifts or if you have any trouble please email hello@differentdrop.com or call and we can try and help.

 

Our warehouse is automated so unless you tell us otherwise, we will ship your order. If you would like us to hold your order please reply to the order confirmation email after placing your order and we are happy to store your order for up to 6 months at no charge. You can review our heat policy here.

Yes, of course. We want Different Drop customers to always be getting the best price. You can see our price match policy here.

No, feel free to mix it up! There is no minimum requirement. You can order wines in any quantity or combination, 1 or 50+ bottles.

No, all prices are set at the full discounted dozen rate already.

If you can't add more wine to your cart it means we are low on stock of that wine. For example, if you are only able to 3 bottles and no more that means we only have 3 bottles left of that wine. If it's a must have, please contact us and we may be able to order more in for you.

Regular Enquiries

Urgent Enquiries

02 8376 8775