(Re-Tasted February 2013) ... It's almost as if I had planned to re-taste this wine every year and a half, but honestly it was a wine that I bought a lot of at the time of its release and just seem to gravitate towards (I guess every year and a half). 2006 was the first year of the Dolomite Riesling and it was the first time that a mention of the soil (not the vineyard) had appeared on a Cave Spring label. They attributed the mineral notes on the wine to the soils and the older vines that went into this wine. Since then they are growing in the same soils but using younger vines for the Dolomite wines ... so this was a real rarity. Dolomite was made to be a restaurant exclusive along with a drop-into-the-winery-only wine, meaning that the winery was the only place you could buy some to take home. Here we are some 7 years from vintage date and it is still showing some great aromas and flavours - this Riesling was built with longevity in mind and the milder 2006 vintage helped in that regard too. I noticed in a previous note I mentioned a hint of petrol, well this bottle showed none of that: nose of lime, wet stone and apricot, almost sweet in nature. The palate also hinted at sweetness: apple, lanolin, lime cordial and mineral all mingling on the tongue with some nice acid replay on the finish. There is an element of a sweet beginning but the wine actually seems to turn it around mid-palate to end dry - like licking a smooth wet rock that was rubbed with lime juice and pith. This is still a wonderfully delicious, easy to drink wine and as it ages it seems to be developing some interesting characteristics while keeping most of it originals intact. See you all again in a year in a half when we'll look in on this one again.
