Finally did it, cracked a bottle of this I had lying around at home. Wanted to see how it compared to the other 2 excellent wines I had recently, the 01 Georgias and Emily's Paddocks by Jasper Hill.
The Clonakilla opened with the greatest complex savoury/meaty aromas I have had in a long time. The smells were so intense, they were verging on pungent... A little more developed than I had expected, with musky, earthy, composty aromas. Perhaps this is due to the fact this has been stored at home for the last 2 years, not at ideal conditions. The palate offerred generous lashings of dark blood plums, cherries, violets, and jamon-like smoky/meaty flavours. Hints of lavender, cloves, and black pepper also emerged. This mouth filling wine has great depth and persistence, with a fair whack of chalky tannins.
On the whole, great wine, and in terms of a fragrant shiraz, better than the Emily's Paddock. However, a real toss up between this and the Georgia's Paddock.
Cheers,
Monghead.
