Oliverhill 2002 Jimmy Section Shiraz Sept 03 (Stelvin)

What a difference a few months can make to a baby of a wine! When I first tried this wine at the winery it had only been completed a couple of weeks previously and was showing nothing. I mentioned I wouldn’t mind trying it again a bit later and I am glad the winery sent me a sample recently because it provides a much better picture now.

The bouquet is clean and ripe and shows white pepper (which is unusual for a McLaren vale Shiraz), a bit of VA despite three hours in the glass, chocolate and plums. On the palate the wine is intensely savoury with an under current of sweet plum, black berry and a little herbaceous character. The flavour complexity comes in waves and lingers for ages. Tannins whilst smooth and unobtrusive are there but slightly bitter but that bitterness should dissipate with a bit more time in the bottle and is no cause for concern. Acid has been judged perfectly and the wine is ample in weight and very well constructed. It should improve in the bottle in the short to medium term and is rated as Recommended with **** for value. Chalk up another one for 2002 and a guy who makes good wine at a reasonable price. This wine is almost elegant by comparison to previous vintages but all the better for it and has relatively good complexity and character.