Riverby Estate Sali's Block Riesling 2024

Riverby Estate sits on Jacksons Road in Rapaura, at the stony heart of Marlborough's Wairau Valley. The first vines went in during 1989, on land that had been cropped and grazed for generations, and the two Riesling blocks followed in 1994 and 1996 — old vines by New Zealand standards. The name belongs to the original farm, whose paddocks were once criss-crossed by the Opawa River; when the river was diverted in the 1930s it left behind the shallow, excessively drained Rapaura stones that now restrict yields and concentrate the fruit.

Around 70 hectares are planted to eight varieties, Sauvignon Blanc foremost, alongside Riesling, Gruner Veltliner, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Semillon and Syrah. Farming is sustainable and deliberately low-yielding, and the estate is a member of Appellation Marlborough Wine. Sheep graze through the rows for weed control and horses are kept on the property, a nod to the land's farming past. Fruit is picked in the cool of the night and handled gently, mostly in stainless steel, to keep the aromatics intact.

Wines not made from estate-grown fruit are bottled under the Cicada label rather than the Riverby name — the cicada being trout food, in keeping with the property's fly-fishing theme.