The idea for Two Hands was born in September 1999 when founders Michael Twelftree and Richard Mintz sat at a friend’s engagement party and decided it was time to make their own wine and market it on the world stage. The original aim was, and still is, to make the best possible Shiraz-based wines from prized growing regions throughout Australia. With so much Australian wine being sold around the globe under multi-region labels in a formulaic style, the intention was to break the mould and showcase the diversity of Australian Shiraz by highlighting regional and vineyard characteristics by allowing the fruit to be the primary feature of the wines.

Climate

2022 marked a very cool vintage in Coal River Valley. Rain continued through December 2021 and January 2022, adding more disease pressure than most seasons. As summer went on the conditions were very mild with some humidity from the north creating the occasional issue to control. In all this meant that the fruit had to mature on the vine for longer than normal, but luckily the weather stabilised and the winemakers were able to bring in a healthy smaller crop of fruit with a natural higher acidity than the previous season. Cool climate viticulture is all about risk and reward and that is what we have in this 2022 Riesling.

Winemaking

The Coal River Valley wine region is located on about 20 minute drive North East of from Hobart in Tasmania. The cool, dry tempretures, sandy clay soils and sloped vineyards are perfect growing conditions for Riesling.The fruit was whole bunch pressed then chilled to 4° with minimal Sulphur added in Coal River Valley after being picked on the 16th of April. It was then overnight freighted to Two Hands’ winery in Marananga, Barossa Valley to be fully overseen by Chief Wine Maker Richard Langford. The juice was then warmed to 10° to have a cool and slow fermentation in stainless steel over 2 weeks. Wine was bottled in June, in the Barossa Valley.

Tasting notes

Written by Two Hands Wines proprietor Michael Twelftree upon release: “Light and bright is the order of the day. This wine is very light straw in colour and showcases aromas of peach, lime, apple, Bickford’s cordial, white flowers, mineral and spice. The palate presence has a terrific mouth weight and feel, as the fruit draws you in the acidity simply floats away. The fruit balances the acid out so well and it draws you along the palate and leaves you with no tartness or bitterness, just a mouth-watering succulence. I love Tassie Riesling for its Germanic appeal and its contrast to the great Rieslings of mainland Australia, this one goes about it with swagger and style, here we have the brilliance of the Coal River Valley all on display.”