Penfolds - Grange 2019 750ml

"BIN 95

Since the first experimental vintages, the mandate for Grange has remained the same – to craft Australia’s greatest red wine from the best shiraz fruit of the vintage. This ambition drives its impeccable consistency, with each release revealing subtle distinctions.

2019 Grange has been likened by the Penfolds winemaking team to those originally crafted by Max Schubert. It has also been posited as a decennial sequence – set to follow in the footsteps of the now highly revered 2009, 1999 and 1989 vintages. Each a wine of power, precision and immense cellaring capability. 2019 – bounding in its youth, with decades still to unravel.

COLOUR: Deep, dark and bright.

NOSE: Benchmark. Automatically recognisable - formic and glacial higher notes – not quite as audacious as a fleeting perception of heady spirit (á la Cognac), and yet not just simple V.A. Beneath, a more familial oaked nuttiness (hazelnut?) recedes to reveal aromas of black licorice/anise/black olive. A shroud of condensed glazed fruits surrenders to reveal a fresher disposition … a coulis of berries and stone fruits; boiled beetroot. Unsurprisingly wafts of coffee-grind, pan-scrapings/jus also ascend, hovering over a persistent base of cold lamb fat and marrow. Upon sitting, a sprinkle of lavender and exotic spices almost completes the aromatic package – well, at least for another minute or two. And then … Early days,

PALATE: Cohesion, vigour, sheen, poise – four borders of a frame that structurally binds the lofty palate ambitions of this South Australian blend. Fresh and balanced. Neither exaggerated nor over-ripe – lively blueberry and other youthful blue/black fruits bely the maturation timeline of this alluring blend. Certainly befitting this style, unmistakable barrel-ferment characters are undoubtedly more pronounced on palate than nose. If the mid-palate is somewhat formidable (ably supporting a thick/dense core), by contrast the back-palate is creamy and caressingly endearing. Indeed, expansive and full – washing away all ahead of it. Certainly persistent. Texturally, chewy/grainy tannins and just-right acidity abet succulence and mouthfeel.

PEAK DRINKING: 2029 - 2065" - Penfolds

Style / Variety: Shiraz (97%), Cabernet Sauvignon (3%)
Region: Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Clare Valley, SA
ABV: 14.5%
Vol: 440ml