2025 Rieslingfreak No.12 Flaxman Valley Riesling

96 pts
An Eden Valley Riesling with beautiful delicacy and structure. Perfectly balanced and impeccably crafted.

Price:
Sale price$35.00
Stock:
In stock, ready to ship
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Description

Originally created to mark John Hughes being named Barossa’s Winemaker of the Year, the No. 12 has quickly become one of the standouts in the Rieslingfreak line-up - a beautiful expression of High Eden Riesling.

Sourced from three small family vineyards in Flaxman Valley, this is everything you want in a crisp, dry white: delicate, racy, and seriously moreish. The 2025 vintage threw everything at the vine, including heat, drought and frost - but what’s ended up in the bottle is pure class.

There’s a gorgeous perfume of kaffir lime, rosewater, and that earthy, slatey thing you get when rain hits hot stone. The palate is super fine and satiny, with bright flavours of gooseberry, yuzu, finger lime and quince, all wrapped around a crackling line of acidity.

Fresh, focused and outrageously good value - this should be at the top of your list if you’re into crisp, dry whites.

96 points
" Long and focused, with persistence and purity. This will age for decades."
- Ryan Montgomery (James Suckling)

96 points - "Racy and pure, with aromas of lime blossoms, crushed stones, grapefruit, talc, flint, white peaches and green apples. The palate is tight and precise, with bright acidity and stony, mineral-driven tension. Long and focused, with persistence and purity. This will age for decades. Drink or hold. Screw cap." - Ryan Montgomery (James Suckling)

95 points - "It is intense, it is flavoursome, it has a curious concentration that almost mimics sweetness (the wine is bone dry), it has that Eden blackcurrant leaf/blackcurrant tang to it, exotic lime, talc, subtle mint notes. It’s feels crackling and crystalline then juicy from mid-palate and finishes fresh and cool and still flavoursome, yet a little chalky likewise. Lawks-a-lordy, my bottom’s on fire, this is a wonderful wine." - Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)

95 points - "A riesling sourced from three small family-owned vineyards in the High Eden slice of Flaxman Valley in the Eden Valley. A finely focused wine this vintage, with lime and lemon in equal measure and some grapefruit peeking through. Hints of makrut lime, bath talc, crushed quartz, a splash of Bickford's lime cordial, ozone and clover blossom. There's a crackling mineral energy to this wine, with a high-tensile minerality. It's sleek and bone dry, with some serious sapidity and crystalline verve on show. Mouth-watering drinking; I love it!" - Dave Brookes (Halliday Wine Companion)

94 points - "Fresh floral aromas of gardenia and spices, already showing depth and complexity, while tangy acidity comes on in full force at the back and finish. The aftertaste is very citric: lemon and grapefruit, with mouth-watering properties and the acidity suggests it would work best with food. A steel blade slicing through a green apple!" - Huon Hooke (The Real Review)

Customer Reviews

Customer Reviews

Based on 2 reviews
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C
Chris P.
A cracker

Loved the different flavours as you went thru the bottle from cold to cool. Much better around the 6 to 8 degrees C.

J
Jake S.
Fantastic

Understandable why it was Riesling of the year

Sourced from three small family-owned vineyards in Flaxman Valley (High Eden).

Intensely perfumed with Kaffir lime, rosewater, autumnal leaves, wet-slate and struck flint. The palate is delicate and slick, with crackling acidity and citrus flavours of gooseberry, yuzu and finger lime, along with quince. Flinty minerality and steely edge bring focus to a persistent finish.

Alc: 11.6% | Residual Sugar: 0.71g/L | pH: 2.75 | TA: 9.7g/L

Price Bracket $31 to $40
Type White
Body Light Bodied
Variety Riesling
Variety Style ["Dry Riesling"]
Country Australia
Region Eden Valley
Australian State SA
Feature High Score
Reviewed By James Suckling
The Real Review
Halliday Wine Companion
Critic Score 96
Size 750ml
Vintage 2025
Closure Screw Cap

Rieslingfreak

Rieslingfreak founder & winemaker John Hughes is quite simply making the most comprehensive, high-quality and remarkably priced range of Rieslings in the country.

Growing up in the family Riesling vineyard in Clare Valley, which John still farms today, Riesling simply runs through this man's blood. John, with the help of his talented winemaking wife Belinda, make only Riesling - not a bottle of any other variety - and they've honed their craft to a level unmatched in Australia.

They are two of the nicest people you're likely to meet, so wholeheartedly committed to their vision and craft, and we are proud to have worked so closely with them for so many years. These wines rank amongst the very best value to be found anywhere in Australia, and we give them our fullest recommendation. Enjoy!

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