Reillys Wines, a proudly South Australian owned and operated winery since 1993 which specialise in producing premium red and white wines sourced from our estate vineyards in the Clare Valley.
The name Reillys stems from our rich history dating back to 1856 when Irish shoemaker Hugh Reilly settled in the township of Mintaro, building his home 'Reilly's Cottage' from the local slate.
Justin & Julie Ardill With a background in pharmacy and medicine, owner and winemaker Justin Ardill saw an opportunity to indulge his passion for wine by purchasing a small parcel of 12 acres of vineyards in Watervale in 1993. Along with these vineyards, he and wife Julie purchased a humble cottage to be their cellar door and winery on the main street of Mintaro known simply as Reilly’s Cottage.
It is this building and its 1856 owner Hugh Reilly that inspired the wine label ‘Reillys Wines’. Beginning in 1994 with 10T of fruit, their first wines were created. Of this, 3.6T of Old Bushvine Grenache was crushed, open fermented and basket pressed by hand by Justin and Julie on the verandah of Reillys Cottage. The first vintage yielded 300 dozen of each of Riesling, Shiraz and Old Bushvine Grenache.
This is a full-bodied wine showing layers of rich dark berry fruits with hints of dark chocolate and mint. The wine displays well-integrated oak and smooth, silky mouth feel with a long lingering finish.
This third vintage release wine has been hand crafted from our viticulturalist Rob Smyth’s vineyards. These aged vines produce small yields of premium quality fruit with concentrated flavours and balanced acidity. Hand picked at optimal ripeness, our winemaker Justin Ardill uses traditional wine making techniques of 10 day open fermentation and hand plunging before gently pressing to extract maximum colour, flavour and tannin from the berries. Maturation in French oak hogsheads for 22 months has allowed development of smooth vanilla oak characteristics. RCV wines are limited release and are only made when the vintage is judged to be of the absolute highest quality. Renowned South Australian artist Tom Gleghorn OAM was our artist in residence for 2010 vintage and has created this beautiful artwork for our labels which are individually numbered, adding to our collection of Gleghorn wine labels. Inspired by an Aboriginal tribal dance, Tom has called this painting ‘The Landscape Dancer’.
Alcohol Level : 14.5%
Awards
BLUE-GOLD & TOP 100 WINES ~ 2019 Sydney International Wine Competition
90 PTS ~ James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com
"A very forthright style with ripe fruit and plenty of extract. The nose offers dark, brambly fruit, ahead of a very rich, sweet palate that has a soft and ripe finish. Drink or hold."
92/100 ~ Huon Hooke, The Real Review, 9th March 2019
"Deep red colour with a tint of purple and a very oaky bouquet. Coffee, mocha and sawn-timber notes. The wine is very full-bodied and dense, rich, concentrated and big-boned. The tannins are assertive and grippy but not unbalanced as the flavour is also massive... It's also juicy, fruit-sweet and lush. A very generous mouthful of red wine, which would also reward further cellaring."
Toni Paterson, The Real Review, 5th March 2019
"Fragrant red fruits with accents of cedar. The wine is showing pleasing development on the nose. The palate is quite tight and concentrated, with blackberry and dark chocolate flavours plus background nutty oak. Full-bodied, structural and intense. Large amounts of chewy tannin"
90 POINTS ~ James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2019
Reviewed by independant wine journalist Dan Traucki, www.facebook.com/dantraucki
"Great depth of colour, red & black berries on the bouquet along with some cherries & a hint of mint. Big, rich unctuous palate with a smidge of chocolate and some spices. DIVINE!!!!"
BLUE GOLD AWARD ~ 2016 Sydney International Wine Competition
92 POINTS ~ James Halliday Wine Companion 2014, Published 29/7/14
“Open-fermented, basket-pressed, and matured in French oak for 22 months. The wine has good depth of colour, and abundant
cassis fruit on the mid-palate…”
BLUE GOLD AWARD & TOP 100 WINES ~ 2011 Sydney International Wine Competition
92 POINTS ~ James Halliday Wine Companion 2011
