WTN: '00 St. Hallett, '98 St. Henri and '98 389

2000 St. Hallett Barossa Faith Shiraz

Blackberry liqueur, cherries, mushrooms, a faint hint of white pepper and currants. A nice pop of acidity but a little too much oak on both the nose and palate. The oak nuances disappeared the following day. Probably at peak and a nice Shiraz for $18 USD on release.

1998 Penfolds South Australia St. Henri Shiraz

“Elegant” was the term one of my guests used to describe this wine. We all agreed everything was subtle and refined. Black cherries, black raspberries, a hint of smoke, milk chocolate, cassis, spice and a bit of plum. Great purity and very food friendly. Lighter and probably less concentrated than most examples of ‘98 Australian Shiraz but this is all the better as a result of those characteristics. Very nice wine and the style makes it a great match with a number of different types of food. This seems to have some aging potential and was worth the $45 USD on release.

1998 Penfolds South Australia Bin 389 Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz

More of a brute than the St. Henri of the same vintage. Licorice, black cherry, Chinese five spice, tar and nutmeg (?). Serious concentration and not a bit hot despite the 14.5% ABV. While not the most food friendly wine, if I could go back to the release date and purchase it again for $19 I would do so.

[Jenise]

2000 St. Hallett Barossa Faith Shiraz

Blackberry liqueur, cherries, mushrooms, a faint hint of white pepper and currants. A nice pop of acidity but a little too much oak on both the nose and palate. The oak nuances disappeared the following day. Probably at peak and a nice Shiraz for $18 USD on release.

1998 Penfolds South Australia St. Henri Shiraz

“Elegant” was the term one of my guests used to describe this wine. We all agreed everything was subtle and refined. Black cherries, black raspberries, a hint of smoke, milk chocolate, cassis, spice and a bit of plum. Great purity and very food friendly. Lighter and probably less concentrated than most examples of ‘98 Australian Shiraz but this is all the better as a result of those characteristics. Very nice wine and the style makes it a great match with a number of different types of food. This seems to have some aging potential and was worth the $45 USD on release.

1998 Penfolds South Australia Bin 389 Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz

More of a brute than the St. Henri of the same vintage. Licorice, black cherry, Chinese five spice, tar and nutmeg (?). Serious concentration and not a bit hot despite the 14.5% ABV. While not the most food friendly wine, if I could go back to the release date and purchase it again for $19 I would do so.

I think "lighter and probably less concentrated...but this is all the better" aptly describes every St. Henri I've had and exactly what I enjoy about them. isn't that the one that's aged in cement casks?

And ditto on the '98 389. One of the wine world's great and ongoing values. I don't believe it costs any or much more now than it did in 1998.

Ta for the notes on the Pennies - I have a bottle of the St Henri and 3 of the Bin 389 in the cellar and don't plan to approach them for maybe another 5-10 years (or more).

regards

Ian

Jenise,

They mature the St Henri in 50 year old large oak vats hence it picks up minimal oak resulting in very pure fruit. The 389 on the other hand is matured in American oak hogsheads 20-30% new the balance 1 and 2 years, including barrels used in the previous vintage for Grange hence the nick name, poor man's grange. The Rewards of Patience book put out every few years by Penfolds (a guide to all Penfold wines going back to the 50s) believes the latter will cellar out to 2030 in the right conditions. I had thought of opening one of the 98 389s soon but based on the note above, I reckon I will just drink something else for a while.

Mark

St Henri and Bin 389 are among my favourite wines. Particularly St Henri. The maturation in old oak lets the character of the shiraz shine through.

FWIW here are some tasting notes that I posted on the Stratsplace forum over a few years, documenting the progress of a stash of Bin 389 1998.

Posted 19 November, 2005:
Penfolds Bin 389 cabernet sauvignon/shiraz 1998 (grapes sourced from several regions)
Dense inky-purple; liquorice, dark chocolate and savoury notes against a background of tarry blackberry and dark fruit. Elegant and beautifully integrated. This wine was – to my taste – at its absolute peak. For me, absolutely the wine of the night.

Posted January 20, 2007:
Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz 1998 (multi-regional blend)
Vibrant, youthful fruit with a firm structure. I regret that I am getting near the end of my stash of 1998 Bin 389: it will live for years yet. Dense colour. Black fruits, licorice/anise, chocolate/mocha, savoury notes.

Posted April 20, 2008:
Penfolds Bin 389 cabernet sauvignon/shiraz, multi region (Australia), 1998
Having finished my own supply of Bin 389 '98, I was pleased to see this on the table from someone else's cellar. There was a worried moment when the cork was drawn; the wine was decanted and left to breathe - and it was fine. Dense garnet-red. Cedar wood, menthol and eucalyptus on the nose; dark chocolate and coffee in the mouth, with cedar and eucalyptus, licorice and anise.

The one from "someone else's cellar" was originally from the same dozen - I had given it to the person who brought it to dinner. I was also interested to read that I'd thought the bottle opened in 2005 was 'at its absolute peak' while then continuing to think pretty much the same for the next three years till the whole lot were gone. It does live a long time, if kept carefully. In fact, I wish I'd bought two dozen in the first place - I'd probably still have some left.

Matilda
Interesting notes.
The ageing profile does seem interesting (from my limited experience of ageing the wine). It seems to take a little time to settle down and throw off the rough edges. From there it seems to stay fairly static with full & bright fruit remaining solid for many years, but with little change year on year. What I have no experience on, is the wine approaching senility and what emerges then, but am determined to put at least one bottle aside for another 10+ years to see.
regards
Ian