Logan Ridge of Tears releases: Lumpy with occasional deliciousness

The critic’s struggle is real.

Tasting wine from wineries you like is thankless. Heap praise and you’re just confirming the positivity bias. Be more circumspect, and you’re missing some of the things that make you like the winery in the first place.

It’s all first-world problems (wine’s great; there are much bigger issues in life), but it’s a worthy thing to ponder all the same. Of course, when I start that sort of shoe-gazing, I remember the quote about Jancis Robinson, about who it was once said (and I’m paraphrasing) that ‘the blood of human kindness drains out of (Jancis) when she sits in front of her keyboard’.

I love Jancis’s work (and she has been very kind about my writing) and that ethos is fantastic, but I’m not quite ditching the human kindness today with these newish Ridge of Tears releases from Mudgee’s Logan Wines on the bench.

I like Pete Logan, and I like what he’s doing (especially the Logan Lab wines). I also want to like this premium range of Mudgee & Orange offerings straight away. They remain, however, silver-medal quality wines that should be in the gold medal tier. And that hurts when the lineup includes $60 Australian Riesling (which is Grosset-level pricing ambitiousness).

Of course, I could also be missing the point and not giving enough patience to these young, well-made (quality fruit, wild ferments, extra time in bottle the whole kit and kaboodle) wines. Then again I could also be letting my respect for Pete’s ambition get in the way of hard-nosed reviewing.

You be the judge.

Logan Ridge of Tears Chardonnay 2022

This comes from Orange region fruit. It’s neutral, fresh, and lean with a profile that is all apple juice and acidity. It’s very clean and delicate if also too pure – you never quite topple over from apples and white flowers into enough fruit for this to get to second gear. The future will be kind, though the angles are just a bit too much for now. 17.5/20, 91/100+. 12.5%, $50.

Logan Ridge of Tears Mudgee Shiraz 2022

We’re definitely in Mudgee here. There’s a distinct Mudgee earth and heart here, with a mode that is both full-bodied and medium-bodied all at once. More savoury than rich, more hearty than opulent there is a rugged charm here with that black fruited limitless that the best Mudgee reds show, but you’d not call this approachable in any way and then a bit warm to finish. Again, the best days are ahead, hopefully when it softens out a bit. 17.5/20, 91/100. 14%, $60.

Logan Ridge of Tears Orange Shiraz 2022

A great exercise here – Shiraz from both Mudgee & Orange, treated the same way. This definitely feels more cooler clime, too, with Syrah ham and white pepper florals over cherry almond fruit. Oak makes a statement here with a vanilla bean swathe. The distraction is that, for the slight warmth, this doesn’t have enough fruit generosity, so you’re reaching for something in the mid-palate to hang on to. Again, not a bad wine, but not easy drinking either. 17/20, 90/100.14%, $60.

Logan Ridge of Tears Riesling 2023

This Orange region Riesling is definitely the best in the range, even if I’m not sure of what it’s meant to be. Quite full colours for something two years old, as a start and this has flesh – a bit of an Alsace intention? That said, underneath, it’s a taut and citrusy, all preserved lemon and grapefruit, but with a certain sort of fleshy sweet and sour thing too. Just to reinforce the tautness, the finish is all grapefruit steel as well. The end result is a bit up and down, firm but trying to be generous and certainly the most drinkable wine in this lineup. It definitely doesn’t lack intensity either. I just wish it was a bit more even. 17.7/20, 92/100. 11.5%, $60.