A batch of his recent and older rieslings, from bone dry to botrytised super-sweet, showed not only the versatility and ageing potential of the variety, but also the winemaker's obsession and skill in selecting and leaving various parcels of grapes from a range of vineyards to ripen to different stages.
"I find riesling the most satisfying wine to make. It expresses the terroir in which it grows more than any other grape, can be made successfully in a diversity of styles, drinks well when youthful then develops a whole new personality in adulthood," he said.
Forrest's rieslings are precise, fragrant, finely balanced wines.
Dry ones can be austere and steely with hints of mineral and lime, like the Wairau Valley Dry Riesling 2007 ($25), even with a few years age when it develops an unmistakable hint of kerosene and a richness in the palate, like the Estate Dry Riesling 2001 (about $30).
Then there's the refreshing off-dry Marlborough riesling 2007 (about $18), a typically New Zealand style with ripe fruit and a crisp finish.
Perhaps more Germanic in style with lower alcohol (about 8.5%) are the Doctors' Riesling 2006 and 2007 (about $20), which have lovely fruit hinting of lime and a fresh, lively acidity - just the thing to sip with fresh strawberries on a summer afternoon.
Then there are the stickies, lusciously sweet dessert wines in various styles: the silky Late Harvest Riesling 2005, and the Botrytised Riesling 2006 (about $35 for 375ml), with aromas of honey and apricots, intensely sweet and unctuous but with a finely balanced, crisp clean finish.
These are made only when conditions permit.
