Parched Crow Early Dawn Semillon 2025
$30, 10.8% alcohol, screwcap, Hunter Valley.
This is a lean, young Hunter Valley semillon that is refreshing to drink now, but will be better with a few more years under its belt. It tastes of lemon, lychee, nashi pear and fresh grapes, and while it’s pretty racy it has a subtle softness to its texture. The length of the palate here is very good. If you can wait a couple of years, you will be rewarded. 90 points.
Campbell Mattinson has been an independent journalist, wine critic and photographer for forty years. He founded The Winefront, is a former chief editor of the Halliday Wine Companion (and former editor of Halliday magazine), and is the only Australian to have won the Australian Wine Communicator of the Year Award more than once. He is 100% independent, and tastes between 5,000 and 10,000 wines each year, blind and in comparative brackets as often as is practicable.
Mattinson is also the founder of the Mattinson Photography business.
