Chateau Yaldara Icon Shiraz 2022
- 94
- $395
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Limited release, single vineyard, sourced from carefully selected rows, this wine positions itself as a true celebration of Barossa Shiraz. The colour isn’t immensely deep, yet it clings persistently to the glass. Aromas of grilled bacon fat, maraschino cherries and macerated plums rise confidently, edged with a distinct whiff of cedar. The alcohol is assertive, almost heady, and the wine clearly benefits from decanting and generous glassware to allow this “beast” to settle. With air, further notes of coconut husk and cloves emerge. The palate is thick and dense, as expected from the style, with formidable tannins, almost gluey in their grip, wrapping the mouth firmly. A fine line of acidity keeps the balance in check, though the generosity of alcohol remains evident. Luxurious black and blue fruits weave through oak spice, carrying the wine to a long, powerful finish.
Lisa Cardelli is an Italian-born wine professional who has been based in Melbourne since 2010. She worked as a sommelier in some of the city’s leading fine-dining restaurants for over ten years before leaving hospitality to become a wine sales representative. Lisa is now a journalist for Il Globo, the newspaper for Italians in Australia and around the world, where she also curates her own wine column. She continues to write about wine for both local and international publications and is on track to become one of the few prolific bilingual wine writers in Australia. A certified WSET Educator, she teaches at various venues across Melbourne. She also judges at local wine shows and for the prestigious Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards and China’s Wine List of the Year Awards. Lisa was the recipient of the 2022 Wine Communicators of Australia award for Best Published Feature Article, a finalist for the same award in 2024, the recipient of the 2022 Sydney Royal Wine Professional Development Scholarship sponsored by the Len Evans Foundation, and one of twelve carefully selected Len Evans Scholars in 2024.
