Sues Vinous Passion

Penfolds release stirs excitement
© by Sue Courtney
It's wine hysteria time in New Zealand and it is all because of Penfolds, the great Aussie wine producer who is undoubtedly, in my opinion, the maker of the greatest range of red wines in the world. From the entry level Rawson's Retreat, named in honour of the company founder Dr Christopher Rawson Penfold, to the company's flagship wine, the hedonistic Grange, and with the famous 'Bin' wines in between, there is something to suit every budget and every drinker's palate.

Here in New Zealand the release is one of the most publicised wine events of the year. The major daily newspapers are filled with small to full-page advertisements of the retailers announcing their prices as the best. For the Internet-savvy, there's a barrage of e-mail from online retailers and you wonder how they so many got hold of your address. Some retailers even advertise on radio but not usually on television, as there is a liquor-advertising ban before 10pm.

For the retailers it is a bit of a cat and mouse game. No one is really prepared to disclose their own particular prices until release day, which this year is April 1st, and the consumers wait with anticipation.

In-store wine tastings are this year's lure with those attending the tastings being privileged to special deals on the day. Which tasting to choose becomes the next dilemma. One retailer is offering free tastings of all except the premium wines, while another is charging $15 for the same deal. One is charging $15 to taste the full range while another is charging $40 for the same deal. Then there's a super tasting of all the premium red and whites plus aged examples of the top wines from great vintages to compare, this for just $100.

The year the release is the 1998 Bin reds and the 1996 Grange, 1998 was one of the best according to all reports we've read from across the Tasman. We've tasted many Aussie reds from the vintage already and we know the quality is good. But what is also good is that the quantities are reasonable and people should have time to compare the prices before they wildly purchase based on the first price they see. Which means that all in all, the consumer will be the winner.

I was privileged to try the whole range of wines as a guest of Southcorp prior to the impending release and yes the quality of the 1998 Bin reds is superb. But so too are the other wines in the range, especially the 1997 St Henri and the impeccable 1996 Grange.

But first we started at the entry level of the red wine range.

2000 Penfolds Rawson's Retreat Shiraz - Ruby Cabernet - Cabernet Sauvignon
Shiraz (56%), Ruby Cabernet (15%), Cabernet Sauvignon (29%) - a multi-regional blend. Berry aromas with a hint of meaty smokiness. Hard tannins make the teeth furry. Simple berry fruit flavours in the palate that have a richer berry and plum flavour lingering once the wine has gone, but a wine that would be better enjoyed with food to cut through that furriness. Penfolds recommend pasta, pizza and red meat dishes. 13.0% Alcohol by volume (abv).

1999 Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon.
Shiraz (74%) Cabernet Sauvignon (26%), a multi-regional South Australian blend. Reasonably appealing aroma of ripe savoury (licorice) fruit. Soft, round flavours at first but an over powering tar and olive note brings a sour flavour to the finish. A big red that is well flavoured and that initial sourness is overtaken by savouring lingering plum-like fruit. 13.5% abv.

Now the two wines that everyone loves to compare.

1998 Penfolds Bin 28 Kalimna Shiraz.
This sentimental favourite of mine is a multi-regional blend from South Australia and includes fruit from the Kalimna Vineyard at the top of the Barossa and aged for 12 months in used American oak. It is a richly coloured wine and the aromas are so very Shiraz-like. Smoke and spice combine with ripe red berry fruits across a spectrum. There's even some ripe black cherry in there. It is a delicious, mouthfilling wine, ripe and balanced with a ton of life ahead of it. Oak is not so overtly vanillin as in the past, but creamy and balanced to the fruit. Ripe tannins are integrated to form a seamless part of the whole package. This will surely become one of the great Kalimna Bin 28's. 14% abv.

1998 Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz.
Made entirely from grapes harvested from Coonawarra, South Australia and aged for 12 months in French oak of which 20% was new, this brightly coloured red wine has a shy aroma. In the mouth it is mellow, spicy and more richly tannic than the Kalimna Bin 28 but get past those upfront tannins and the wine really opens up and entices. The blackberry fruit is juicy, mouthfilling and lipsmackingly ripe. It is creamy and long with a gorgeous smooth finish and is simply a lovely wine with great potential ahead of it. With those tannins I'd tend to decant to enjoy now, or leave to cellar for a year or so at least. 13.5% abv.

The rest of the lower level 'Bin' wines were tasted next.

1998 Penfolds Bin 138 Old Vine Barossa Valley Shiraz-Grenache-Mourvèdre.
Shiraz (55%), Grenache (25%), Mourvèdre (20%) from the Barossa Valley, matured for 16 months in old (six years plus) American oak. Although the wine has been produced since 1992, with varying proportions of the grapes making up the blend, the 'Bin' number adorns the label for the first time with this release. Deeply coloured with a spicy aroma. Creamy in the palate, eventually. Dry tannins, olives, nuts, earth and spice with a sprinkle of cinnamon along with licorice. The dryness of the wine begs for a juicy steak. It is very tight and unyielding at this stage with the fruit screaming to be released but being held back by the tannins. Although the oak barrels were quite old, I imagine a suggestion of cedar, too. This looks like it will be a wine for the cellar as sweet fruit eventually emerges. 14.0% abv.

1998 Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz.
Cabernet Sauvignon (57%) and Shiraz (41%). A multi-region hot-climate South Australian blend, aged for 14 months in American oak of which 22% was new. This is a densely coloured wine, black with bright crimson rims. Smoke, vanilla and spice tantalise the olfactory senses. American oak dominates the palate at first but quickly gives way to an elegant and balanced wine that is in fact, a subtle blockbuster. With violets, spice, pepper, licorice, blackcurrant and plum fruits and a touch of mocha, this wine has a lovely balance and flavour and is seducing me totally with its captivating charm. It is fleshy, juicy, peppery and savoury with oak sitting nicely in the background while the fruit plays on the palate. Totally mouthfilling and long with its big ripe tannins, pepper spice and emerging licorice linger on the finish, this is a great wine and a great cellaring prospect.. 14.0% abv.

1998 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon
A multi regional South Australian blend, including a proportion of Coonawarra fruit, with 12 months in a combination of new (23%) and used French and American oak.
This is a deep purple-red, cool, tarry, tannic-rich wine, with sweet berry fruit and eucalypt. Tannins dominate in my mouth and I think it will need years in the cellar to experience the pleasure of the sweet red berry fruit. The oak is integrated but the flavour is rich, tarry and fairly savoury - the 'soy' descriptor in the Penfolds notes say it all. It is sure to age as well as the 1990 Bin 407 has, a delicious taste I experienced with lunch later in the tasting. 13.5% abv.

The Penfolds St Henri Shiraz, first released in 1957, is a unique Australian red and a unique wine in the Penfolds range. Aged in 2000 litre old oak vats for 12 months then matured in the bottle until its release four years after vintage, it sits in the portfolio at a level above the previous wines reviewed but not quite at the premium level.

1997 Penfolds St Henri Shiraz
A multi-regional South Australian blend of 100% Shiraz grapes harvested from the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Eden Valley, Padthaway and Adelaide Hills, this is a big, black wine with red hues. Rich and savoury meat aromas combine with the fragrance of violets and a lovely, clean expression of Shiraz spice. This is a classy wine that shows Shiraz in its element without the encumbrance of oak. With licorice, spice, violets, rich berry fruit and eucalypt it is very ripe, round, full of flavour and absolutely delicious. Drinking very well now though a wine that will age well. A totally intriguing wine - it is vinous, velvety and long, long, long. 'Yum' - one of my favourites of the tasting. 13.5% abv.

1998 Penfolds RWT Barossa Valley Shiraz The second release of the 'Red Winemaking Trial' is made from 100% Shiraz from the Barossa Valley and matured in new French oak for 15 months. It is a dense, deep crimson, red and the nose reeks of cream and spice and the merest hint of oak, which is more dominant in the palate with mocha, chocolate and cedar notes. This is a stylish, finely structured, but hugely tannic wine. There is richly concentrated fruit with prunes and blueberry and a smoky finish in this massive wine. A second sample tried later was clean, slightly minty, with juicy blackberry and raspberry fruit and vivid peppery spice. I hardly noticed the tannins at all and wondered if this was from a different bottle. 14% abv.

1998 Penfolds Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon
A blend of South Australian Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from Coonawarra, Padthaway, Kalimna and McLaren Vale, matured in new American for 15 months. Deeply coloured, almost black, the aromas are just gorgeous. There's cedar and opulent ripe fruit with a creamy complexity. In the palate rich, juicy berry fruit of cassis and plum combines beautifully with the coconut-like flavours of the American oak and fine oak tannins marry into the wine to add structure without intruding. The flavour is impressively long. It is a wine to sip and savour with your eyes closed - a totally delicious dreamy wine. If I had been scoring the wines, this would have been given 19.5/20, my highest pointed wine of the tasting - so far. 13.5% abv.

But then the flagship wine was poured.

1996 Penfolds Grange
This is a multi-regional blend from Kalimna, Barossa Valley, McLaren Valley, Magill Estate and Padthaway. A small proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (percentage not stated) is combined with Shiraz. The wine was matured for 19 months in new American oak. This densely coloured wine has wonderfully refined aromas of spice, subtle cedar and violets. Quite satisfying and complex - a wine you could smell for ages. Licorice dominates the palate at first and there is also a flavour reminiscent of chocolate-coated Turkish delight. Fine and vinous, a fusion of so many characters. Ripe, silky tannins combine with chocolaty cedar, spicy black pepper, ripe fruits of citrus, plum, and blueberry, with licorice savouriness and creamy flavours lingering. It is such a treat to try beautiful wine. Yes, words like 'opulent' can be used. Ripe and mellow already but tannins say "Rewards will be had with patience". A truly great wine that cannot be faulted. 13.5% abv.

This was undoubtedly one of the great tastings of the year.

31st March 2001