2025 Halliday Top Rated

Best riesling in Australia 2025

By The Tasting Team

The Rieslingfreak No.12 Riesling 2023 has been named the best riesling in Australia.

The Halliday Wine Companion Awards celebrate the best wines in Australia. Below you'll find Australia's top rieslings, along with the wine ratings awarded by the Tasting Team.

Five regions – Eden Valley, Tasmania, Henty, Canberra District and Porongurup – are represented in the 10 top-scoring rieslings of the year. The Clare Valley performed strongly, too, as expected, though from a quality perspective the days of the Eden and Clare valleys having it all their own way are over. Great Australian riesling comes from many different places now; this is in the context, of course, that a Clare Valley wine took out this category last year, and a beautiful Eden Valley example took home the chocolates here.

2025 Best Riesling of the Year in Australia

Rieslingfreak No.12 Riesling 2023

98 points (PD*) | Price when tasted $37


Rieslingfreak No. 12 Riesling 2023, Eden Valley

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From Flaxman Valley (in Eden Valley) and the freakiest riesling freaks of all, perhaps. This is electric. So much vigour and perkiness, a vibrant and poised white that delivers strong mineral charm, beautifully brittle acidity and tension and length in spades. Ultra floral scents with lime, blackcurrant, white pepper, talc, flint, warm steel and chamomile. The palate a superb echo with succulent, mineral-charged texture and a sense of pristine, pretty fruit in tow. A delicate expression with compelling energy and drinkability as its charter. – Mike Bennie

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The 2025 Halliday Wine Companion is available now. Secure your copy of Australia's most comprehensive wine guide at all good bookstores.

This is an edited extract from the 2025 Halliday Wine Companion, with reviews by James Halliday, Campbell Mattinson, Dave Brookes, Jane Faulkner, Jeni Port, Marcus Ellis, Mike Bennie, Philip Rich, Shanteh Wale and Toni Paterson MW. Cover art by Vera Babida.

*Panel decision – score awarded by the Halliday Tasting Team at the annual Awards judging.


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