Very limited stocks remaining. Clonakilla only produce tiny quantities of their flagship Shiraz Viognier, and in response to the high demand for their wines decided to introduce the O’Riada Shiraz. This wine is named after the cousin of Clonakilla founder, John Kirk, and Irish music legend Sean O’Riada. Fruit for this wine is sourced from a collection of several parcels from around the Canberra district. At around a third of the price of the Shiraz Viognier, it offers exceptional drinking.
"96 Points. Crimson-purple; a supremely elegant, medium-bodied wine with a vivid array of black cherry, blackberry, pepper and multi-spice flavours reflecting the co-fermentation with 6 per cent viognier, the inclusion of whole bunches of shiraz, and 12 months in French oak (30 per cent new); texture and balance are exceptional. 14% alc; screwcap Drink: to 2020 Price: $45" - James Halliday, winecompanion.com.au.
"95 Points. Delightful focus and poise, built on elegantly honed black cherry fruit and black pepper with a vibrancy and depth that takes it to another level. It has delightfully fresh acidity and beautifully fine, structured, peppery tannins with excellent texture and minerality. It's very quickly earned a placed in Australia's hall of Shiraz Viognier fame." - Tyson Stelzer, Wine 100, October 2009.
"2008 Clonakilla O'Riada (A$42/NZ$48) is made largely from grapes off vineyards near Clonakilla. It nevertheless shows much of the flavour and style of its more illustrious cellar-mate. There's the same perfume of red and dark fruits and spices, lifted by a breath of viognier. It's gentle and fleshy in the mouth, finishing with dry tannins and a brush of acidity. Hooke wrote: "Fragrant and spicy - pure seduction! Cool-climate expression, with an elegant palate and supple, smooth texture." As with senior wine, this wine will develop further over many years, but is simply delicious now" - Gourmet Traveller Wine Magazine, Oct/ November 2009
"Gee, I really dig this medium-bodied wine - it's full of exquisite cool-climate fruit and incredibly perfumed. Spicy with a sprinkling of black pepper, a core of bright plum fruit that follows through on the palate and quite savoury with cleansing, tangy acidity and soft fine tannins" - Jane Faulkner, The Age, August 15, 2009.
"The 2008 O’Riada Shiraz is made from fruit selected from four vineyards around the villages of Murrumbateman and Hall. The winemaking included the use of pre-ferment maceration, whole bunches, warm extended ferments, 6% co-fermented Viognier and twelve months maturation in French oak, 30% new. The warmth of the 2008 vintage shines through with a rich aroma of blackberry, dark cherry, rose petal and spice; wonderfully fragrant with a silky, medium bodied palate. Drink now after decanting or cellar for five to ten years." - Notes from Clonakilla.
