Thirty Bench has finally got to where Emma Garner, winemaker, wants to be in terms of their small lot Riesling series, that’s extending the bottle age of these wines to a year-plus before release: “They just need that time,” she says. Steel Post comes from the second oldest block (planted in 1982) of four-plus acres; and this year it really raised a few notches on my opinion scale (could it be that bottle age?). Nose is kinda quiet with mineral and citrus notes, but the palate is full-on Riesling-fan crazy: lime zest, mineral, green apple, zippy and zesty and is the driest of all the Rieslings in the Thirty Bench portfolio this year. Plus the wine sits and picks at the tongue with its acidity that is just off the chart wow! Price: $30.00 – Rating: ****+