Ihana Shiraz (Valtteri Bottas x Oliver’s Taranga) Edition #1 2022

Valtteri Bottas apparently loves Australian wine, especially Shiraz, almost as much as he loves racing cars. Which explains why he teamed up with winemaker, Corrina Wright, to develop this wine from Oliver’s Taranga Vineyards’ premium McLaren Vale fruit. The story goes that, on his first taste of the wine, Valtteri uttered “Ihana”, Finnish for ‘wonderful, marvellous, fantastic’. It begins with aromas of perfumed musky spice, blackberry and plums. It’s intriguingly brooding but not heavy. A moment in the glass reveals blueberries and the sweet fragrance of deep red roses in the cool of a summer afternoon with a hint of vanilla pastry. In your mouth the wine is incredibly smooth and supple with soft round tannins. Don’t let the buoyancy of the tannins mislead you though, they provide plenty of structure, promising a long life ahead. Richly concentrated, yet elegant, carried by a lingering, savoury finish. It weighs in at 14.5% alcohol and is gently cradled by the bright spicy fruit, not showing a hint of warmth. Ihana.

Nicole Bilson

Wine Critic at Winepilot

Nicole loves wine. So much so that she gave up a successful career in Pharmacy, perfected her spitting technique, and moved from sunny Queensland to the wine-drenched laneways of Melbourne. Stints in hospitality, wineries, retail, sales and marketing filled the next few years while Nicole built her knowledge and searched for the right path. She completed the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET) Diploma in 2016 and became a certified WSET Educator the following year. She now juggles a number of roles including teaching people about wine, curating wines lists for restaurants and bars, judging in Australian wine shows and, of course, writing. In 2016 she won the Negociants Working With Wine writing award and has since contributed to Gourmet Traveller WINE, Halliday Wine Companion Magazine and Nourish Magazine.

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