Castle Rock Estate Diletti Riesling 2021

James Suckling Top 100 Value Wines of the World 2022
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of Australia 2022

Castle Rock Estate is an exceptionally beautifully sited vineyard on a 55ha property, set high in the Porongurup Ranges, operated by the Diletti family. The elevation, 300 metres, and the position of the vineyard, which exposes the vines to cooling south-east breezes, enable varieties like Riesling and Pinot Noir (which are heat sensitive and early to ripen) to develop maximum varietal flavour and ripeness while maintaining natural acidity and balance.

"Free-run juice is fermented in puncheon and barriques. The bouquet gives hints that are transformed on a palate with an operatic trumpet of flavours circling the ultra-intense core of lime and lemon. One of the most spectacular young Australian rieslings I have encountered. That length, that power."  James Halliday

"The 2021 Castle Rock Estate Diletti Riesling is a new addition to the winery's Riesling stable. It's an exciting extension to our Rieslings. This wine is about texture and complexity built around the tight Riesling structure yet still displaying its Riesling DNA; free-run juice filled to puncheon and barriques prior to ferment with a different amount of juice solids (cloudy juice) in each barrel. We then matured the wine on lees in Barrels for nine months prior to bottling.”  Castle Rock Estate 

"Rob Diletti's excellent palate and sensitive winemaking mark Castle Rock as one of the superstars of WA."  James Halliday 

"The Porongurup region in the Great Southern of WA is highly regarded for its capacity to produce riesling of precision and drive. Castle Rock and winemaker and vigneron Rob Diletti have ridden that wave from the beginning, with other producers seeking out Rob's winemaking prowess to give their riesling fruit every chance of flourishing in the bottle."  Nick Butler

Expert reviews

"Free-run juice is fermented in puncheon and barriques. The bouquet gives hints that are transformed on a palate with an operatic trumpet of flavours circling the ultra-intense core of lime and lemon. One of the most spectacular young Australian rieslings I have encountered. That length, that power. Drink by: 2041."  James Halliday, Halliday Wine Companion - 98 points and Special Value Wine  ★  

"A dry riesling revelation! What a staggeringly expressive nose this dry riesling from one of the most remarkable appellations in Western Australia has. So much ripeness and drive on the very long super-focused finish. And it only has 11% alcohol! Drink or hold. Screw cap."  James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com - 95 points and Top 100 Value Wines of the World 2022 and Top 100 Value Wines of Australia 2022

"There’s character to this riesling; it’s not cookie-cutter. It’s citrussy, slatey and hay-like but from there it gets more difficult to describe, though it has something tonic-like to it. It boasts both body and length, or perhaps power and persistence is a better way to say it, though it somehow still manages to feel finessed, even delicate. Drink: 2023 - 2029+."  Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front - 95 points

Awards

James Suckling Top 100 Value Wines of the World 2022
James Suckling Top 100 Wines of Australia 2022
Special Value Wine – Halliday Wine Companion  ★ 

Porongurup

The Great Southern wine region of Western Australia is the most ancient, most isolated and largest wine region in the world. The region is up to 2.8 billion years old and covers over 1.7 million hectares, a whopping 200 kilometres from east to west and 100km from north to south. Since the Nyittiny – creation times – our First Nations people of the Wagyl Kaip region have shared and cared for this Great Southern country.

Great Southern time is a place of dramatic contrasts - striking tall timber forests, swathes of rich agricultural land, imposing mountain ranges, dramatic peaks and ancient rivers. Due to its vast size and spread, it features not only different terroirs but climates that vary from the Mediterranean through to the maritime, resulting in unique wines that reflect their natural surroundings. From this diversity a wine region of international significance and reputation has emerged – the pristine Great Southern wine region.

The region is divided into five distinct sub-regions, each producing wine styles that reflect their unique terroir. The sub-regions are Porongurup, Frankland River, Mount Barker, Denmark and Albany - refer to the map below.

Porongurup sub-region

Porongurup is a very small wine district just east of Mount Barker and 40km north of Albany. It is named after the oldest mountain range in the world, the Porongurups, a group of domed granite peaks whose formation dates back many millions of years to the Precambrian age. 

The sub-region encompasses the entire 12km long Porongurup Range, whose peaks reach a height of 670 meters at the Devil's Slide and are visible from any vineyard in the region. Today around 10 vineyards bask on the sunny northern slopes of these ancient hills.

Porongurup's climate is mostly Mediterranean with cool to mild winters and sunny and warm summers. With a mean January temperature of just 19 degrees Celsius, it has an extended ripening season, with grapes harvested in mid-March through to May. The regular sea breeze which blows inland on hot summer afternoons also contributes to the extended growing season.

Due to its aspect and height above sea level, the sub-region boasts a special climatic feature, a nocturnal thermal zone created by warm air rising above the denser cold air sliding down the hillsides and settling on the valley floor. The conditions produced from this air drainage are ideal for ripening and reduce the risk of frost. 

Wine grape production in the Porongurup began in 1978 with plantings of Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by more plantings in 1979 and 1983. Today there are also plantings of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Shiraz, as the Porongurup’s reputation as a producer of distinctive cool climate wines continues to grow. 

Porongurup can produce standout Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet and Shiraz, but it is Riesling that is undoubtedly the star of the show, the conditions being ideal for producing riesling of exquisite precision and drive.
 

Porongurup is one of the five sub-regions of Great Southern

The winemaker 

Rob Diletti is the winemaking son of Castle Rock Estate founders Angelo and Wendy Diletti. During his formative years Rob worked in the family's vineyard, developing a keen interest in grape-growing. After graduating from Charles Sturt University with a Wine Science degree, Rob gained winemaking experience at Mountadam Wines, Grosset Wines, Plantagenet Wines, Jean Grenier in Alsace, and Alkoomi Wines prior to returning home to Castle Rock Estate.

In 2001 he co-designed the Castle Rock Estate winery, a 200-tonne winery set within the family's vineyards. Soon after taking over the winemaking, Rob was recognised for the quality of the wines he made. These accolades include the Tony Smith Scholarship, Young Achiever of the Year (Wine Industry Association of Western Australia), Young Winemaker of the Year (Wine Selectors) and was named the inaugural Winemaker of the Year in James Halliday's Wine Companion in 2015.

"Rob Diletti has a reputation for making great Riesling. He is a superstar."  Erin Larkin

"Rob Diletti is highly intelligent and modest. He was the recipient of the inaugural Winemaker of the Year Award in my 2015 Wine Companion. His superb palate and sensitive winemaking mark Castle Rock as one of the superstars of WA. The countless trophies and gold medals leave no doubt about Diletti's skills."  James Halliday

About the winery

Castle Rock Estate is an exceptionally beautifully sited vineyard on a 55ha property, set high in the Porongurup Ranges, operated by the Diletti family. The elevation, 300 metres, and the position of the vineyard, which exposes the vines to cooling south-east breezes, enable varieties like Riesling and Pinot Noir (which are heat sensitive and early to ripen) to develop maximum varietal flavour and ripeness while maintaining natural acidity and balance.

Angelo and Wendy Diletti purchased the property in 1981 to grow premium quality table-wine grapes. The first varieties, Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, were planted in 1983. Those first two hectares were followed in 1986 with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and further plantings of Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon. Later plantings included more Pinot Noir, Riesling and Chardonnay, plus Sauvignon Blanc, Gerwurztraminer and the first and only plantings (so far) of Grüner Veltliner in the Porongurup wine region.

"The easterly aspect, in my opinion, has turned out to be what makes our site so unique. We get the early morning sun and not the hot afternoon sun, the prevailing wind in Summer is an easterly. In most of WA it is hot, but for us, it comes off the bight, so is a cooling sea breeze, and although we are only 300m above sea level, the surrounding land is low and flat, so I believe that the way the easterly is uplifted as it hits the Porongurups is important too."  Rob Diletti, Winemaker