a fine follow-up to seia's inaugural 2004 clifton hill, this again delivers ripe, concentrated flavors of plum and berry, lifted with citrus and finishing with a hint of mint. despite the high (15.3%) alcohol, it is clean and bracing, with natural acids and very little heat in the finish. as young as it is, it hits a bit of a dead spot in the back, but it has the stuffing (and the pedigree) that would suggest that with a few years of cellaring it will open out and show more of the herb and smoked meat character that is lurking just below the surface.
Clifton Hill Vineyard