JM 1ST APPROACH

Pale straw-green; a floral bouquet of apple blosom and spice, right up there with the best of them, yields to a palate with great drive to its lime juice flavours that last long after the wine is swallowed. Right up there with the best of them. 96 points James Halliday's Top 100 NSW Wines 2011

Well integrated toasty/bacony oak. And a lemony tang through the finish to complete the job nicely. At first I couldn’t find the X-factor – and then, a couple of hours from opening, it really started to rumble. Time in the cellar should work wonders for this little beauty. Rated : 95 Points Winefront.com.au

Green pear, citrus, apricot kernel and a few dried herbs, but perhaps ‘cooly fruity’ is a good way to describe it. It’s clean and refreshing with excellent fruit purity and a little bit of ‘mineral’, perhaps there’s a touch of sweetness to round out  and balance, but feels pretty much dry and pulls that way with its gently herbal and sparkling finish. Well, maybe not ultra-complex, but so good to drink. 91 points Winefront.com.au

The 2012 The Empress Riesling shows great fruit purity on the palate with fresh, expressive “Bickfords” lime cordial characters along with grapefruit and lemon sorbet zing. After the initial pure citrus flavours the wine glides across the mid-palate with an energetic gait showing hints of crushed quartz, orange blossom, white flowers and talc with lighter nuances of lemon curd and clotted cream. The wine finishes with a well-defined, minerally line of acidity that shows great energy and spark as it guides the pure citrus and floral elements through to a persistent and dangerously moreish finish.