Gundog pushing boundaries with the Indomitus Albus 2022

Who would think to blend Hunter Valley Semillon & Canberra Riesling together? Matt Burton at Gundog Estate, clearly. The Indomitus label is where Burton puts some of his boundary-pushing wines, some of which just feel like experiments, others are seriously intriguing.

This white includes some fruit that spent an enormous 175 days on skins, and it has the pithy phenolics to match. A whole aromatic cavalcade going on to kick off- grapefruit, chalk, talc, green apple and some sort of green herb edge. Delightful! After that nose the palate just feels overly taut, grippy and tangy, all green grapefruit and green apple and firm tannins. Is it an easy wine? No. Is it a seriously intense and long wine? Yes, although i feel like it loses something by robbing some of the purity of two hero regional styles smooshed together. Still interesting, but anything but smashable.

Best drinking: now, I guess. But given the components, it will still be very alive in a decade. 17.5/20, 91/100. 11%, $45. Gundog Estate website. Would I buy it? A glass.

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