2024 Clonakilla Hilltops Shiraz

93 pts
Excellent value as ever, the Hilltops Shiraz offers Clonakilla class at a very affordable price.

Price:
Sale price$29.00
Stock:
In stock, ready to ship
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Description

If there is a smarter buy in the world of Australian Shiraz, it is hard to find. The Hilltops Shiraz offers a genuine slice of the Clonakilla magic and the genius of Tim Kirk without the price tag of their flagship wines. It is consistently one of the best value reds in the country.

Sourced from the Mullany and Gleeson families in the district of Young (on the South West Slopes of NSW), the 2024 vintage was a case of quality over quantity. An October frost reduced yields significantly, but a warm, dry finish to the summer ensured the remaining fruit was incredibly intense.

The winemaking is designed to let that fruit shine. The grapes were destemmed and fermented in open vessels with daily pump-overs to extract flavour gently. It then spent a year in French oak puncheons and barriques with just 10% new wood. The result is a wine that balances cool-climate finesse with the rich, ripe aromatics of the warm 2024 summer. It is polished, complete, and ready to go.

93 points - "This release is as pitch perfect as they come. Medium in body, fruit-driven but with savoury and herbal inputs, slipped with tannin and satisfying through the finish. Prettiness, lightness and darkness are all afforded equal billing, which then allows toasty, meaty, umami characters to work around the edges. This is an excellent wine to buy and drink." - Campbell Mattinson (The Wine Front)

93 points - "Full, bright purple colour; dark cherry, mixed spice aromas featuring star anise, pepper and a faint lilt of eucalyptus. Medium-full body and fine tannins that are poised and precise, the palate elegantly framed and long. This is enjoyable now for its superb balance and softness, but has the potential to develop well in bottle for many years." - Huon Hooke (The Real Review)

Customer Reviews

Customer Reviews

Based on 9 reviews
67%
(6)
33%
(3)
0%
(0)
0%
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(0)
N
Noel M.
Good drop

Beautiful drink

P
Peter V.d.M.
Excellent value

Lovely depth for an incredible price

K
Kelvin H.
One of my favourites

Loved it! I think this is one of their best vintages highlighting the Hilltops strengths.

J
Jeff M.
Best price in Sydney

Great dinner time wine...

R
Rhonda F.
Mrs Rhonda Fulop

Absolutely wonderful

This Shiraz is made from grapes grown by the Mullany and Gleeson families in the Hilltops district around Young on the south-western slopes of New South Wales.

The fruit was destemmed and fermented in open fermenters with twice daily pump overs with 12 to 16 days on skins. Post ferment the wine was racked to French oak puncheons and barriques, around 10% new, for 12 months.

Spring rainfall was surprisingly healthy, given the forecast for a strong El Nino effect. October frost reduced yields in some sites. The warm weather did arrive though mid to late summer and excellent ripening conditions prevailed. The nett result: lower volumes of very high-quality fruit showing rich, ripe aromatics and generally intense fruit flavours.

Drink now or cellar with confidence for 10+ years.

Tim Kirk

Price Bracket $31 to $40
Type Red
Variety Shiraz
Country Australia
Region Hilltops
Australian State NSW
Reviewed By The Wine Front
The Real Review
Critic Score 93
Alcohol 14.5%
Size 750ml
Vintage 2024
Closure Screw Cap

Clonakilla

Clonakilla is one of the true icons of the Australian wine scene. Since its inception, it has been one of the leading lights of the Australian cool climate wine insurgence.

They boast one of the most collectable wines in the country in their Shiraz Viognier, a wine of outstanding quality and consistency over the last two decades. Whether Shiraz, Riesling or otherwise, every wine in the Clonakilla stable are considered amongst the benchmark examples in Canberra District.

Quite simply, Tim Kirk and his family-owned estate are one of the true gems in the Australian wine industry crown.

Tim Kirk harvesting at Clonakilla Discover Clonakilla Wines

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