There are few rieslings made in NZ that make me happy. They're limited to about six labels. Melness is made by Pegasus Bay one of the few riesling producers I trust. And they got it right.

Popped this open for a couple of Aussies who came in and didn't believe NZ could produce good Riesling. They changed their mind after trying this. It retails for around $13 USD.

The colour was a golden straw with some co2 expression. The nose is complex with lychees, pineapple, lime, floral and mineral notes all evident. The palate is nicely sweet with a good acid to balance it out. Intially the lovely sweet flavours roll around the month and then they pulled back into line by gripping acids. The effect on the mouth is exciting and invigorating. Pineapple, sweet lime and lemon and again those mineral notes show through in the mouth. But wait it gets better. The length on this wine is very impressive with flavours remaining for some time, producing a fine finish. This wine reminds me of some of the better Spatlese's but with an alcohol of %12.5 this wine has a texture that many German Rieslings don't have. 93 points.