The Tasting Panel magazine

May 2012

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WINE NEWS COMPLEX AND SERIOUS IN STYLE, Riesling off the Richter Scale TRUE & DARING RIESLING RISES ABOVE ADVERSITY AND LIVES UP TO ITS NAME by Meridith May "I never drink wine because I'm thirsty," says New Zealander Hennie Bosman, wine- maker and co-creator of True & Daring Riesling. "I drink to enjoy wine and to pair with food. That's why I chose Riesling as the [one and only] varietal to produce." On the eastern mid-coast of the South Island of New Zealand lies Waipara, just north of Christchurch. "The region gives you free draining soil and gravel; it gives you the hillsides and the Canterbury Plains: a terroir most suitable for an expression of Riesling," says Bosman. Hennie and Celia Bosman explain that they are the fi rst in New Zealand to believe in Riesling enough to become a single-variety producer—and Riesling specialists. "New Zealand is not limited to Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir," Hennie attests. "Anyway, we take away the stereotype, don't we?" With 5,000 cases in production, the 2007 is the current release. "We hold our wine back," Celia notes. "It shows better with some age." While two devastating South Island earth- quakes damaged their stock of 2008 and 2009 vintages, the 2007 remained intact. In spite of the setback, the Bosmans have a strength that keeps them going forward. "The quakes forced us to be true and daring, forcing us to do something out of the ordinary and make a wine off the Richter scale. Our next available vintage is 2011," Hennie tells THE TASTING PANEL. "We can't survive if we draw this out over four years. But we found a silver lining to that cloud: The sophistication of the 2007 is a good way for us to introduce our wine." See www.trueanddaring.com; for info on U.S. availability, go to www.palmateerconsulting.com. The Character of True & Daring 2007 The beeswax bouquet transforms into honeysuckle and then rises to a lemon curd, fully weighted on the tongue with a honeycomb mid-palate. It's a balanc- ing act of minerality and fruit, acid and texture– the wine is seriously playful and playfully serious. —M.M. 56 / the tasting panel / may 2012 Celia and Hennie Bosman and their Border Collie, Sipho, on their property in the Waipara region of New Zealand.

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