The Vintage Journal Penfolds Collection 2022

This eJournal covers new releases in the Penfolds Collection 2022 including wines from Bordeaux, California and Australia featuring the 2018 Penfolds Bin 95 Grange.

ANDREW CAILLARD MW

VINTAGE JOURNAL – NEW RELEASES –

PENFOLDS COLLECTION 2022

Peter Gago

CONTENTS

Penfolds Collection 2022

Scores

Penfolds Australian Collection – 2022 Release

Penfolds V Preview

Penfolds Bordeaux Collection – 2022 Release Penfolds Californian Collection – 2022 Release Special Bin Commemoration – 60th Anniversary

PENFOLDS COLLECTION 2022 A milestone two-hemisphere release comprising the spectacular 2018 Penfolds Grange vintage and the inaugural 2019 Penfolds French Winemaking Trial from Bordeaux . The Penfolds Collection 2022 marks the 60th anniversary of the landmark Penfolds Bin 60A, Peter Gago’s 20th anniversary as Chief Winemaker, and new directions for the Penfolds brand with the unveiling of its Bordeaux collaboration. This year’s collection – the largest ever – also highlights a grand vision not seen since the 1960s at Penfolds. It follows some major changes in trading conditions over the last few years, particularly punitive Chinese tariffs and a new agile business structure. The latter has enabled Penfolds to accelerate plans for its future. Although the China market has been troublesome in recent years, the outlook for global wine brands extends into the decades. For instance, Penfolds has been working towards its California venture since the late 1980s. Ideas for a China project were first mooted 10 years ago, and already a Penfolds Lot 518 ‘Spirited Wine’ with Baijiu was released some years ago. A Franco-Australian venture has been on the cards for a long while, with the Thienot/ Penfolds Champagne collaboration now a few years old as well. The launch of Penfolds Bin 169 Cabernet Sauvignon on La Place de Bordeaux, the increasing interest in the Beyond Bordeaux category, and closer relationships between CVBG/ Dourthe, one of the key players in the sales and marketing of Grand Cru Classé wines, have created further momentum. This year’s collection also marks the release of Penfolds’ first Bordeaux red, which takes place 72 years after Max Schubert’s visit to Bordeaux, where he first imagined a great ‘Australian Claret’.

Penfolds Collection 2022

In the future this annual release is likely to expand, as the Wines of the World project gathers speed. This Penfolds Collection 2022 is a gear shift, because it now incorporates Californian and French partnerships and ventures. Aside from Australian, Californian and Bordeaux releases, the cross-Pacific blends and Franco-Australian wines all add further grist to the mill. Experimentation and transformation are themes that underpin this year’s collection. It makes for one of the most interesting and controversial releases in the history of Penfolds. On the other hand, the golden thread of the signature Penfolds house style weaves through the portfolio, creating familiarity, consistency and connectivity. Even though the world faces uncertain times, the Penfolds Collection 2022 represents forward thinking and optimism, as well as offering a very solid and engaging range of wines. Scores PENFOLDS AUSTRALIAN COLLECTION 2022 2018 Penfolds Bin 95 Grange Shiraz – 100 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 144 Yattarna Chardonnay – 99 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 150 Marananga Shiraz – 98 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz – 97 points 2020 Penfolds RWT Bin 798 Shiraz – 96 points 2021 Penfolds Reserve Bin A Chardonnay – 96 points 2019 Penfolds St Henri Shiraz – 95 points 2019 Penfolds Bin 169 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon – 95 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz – 95 points 2021 Penfolds Bin 311 Chardonnay – 95 points 2022 Penfolds Bin 51 Riesling – 95 points 2021 Penfolds Bin 23 Pinot Noir – 94 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 138 Shiraz, Grenache Mataro – 93 points 2020 Penfolds Magill Estate Shiraz – 92 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon – 92 points 2020 Penfolds Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz, Coonawarra – 91 points

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

Preview – multi-vintage Yattarna Chardonnay Penfolds V – 96+ points

Penfolds Australian Collection – 2022 Release The core Penfolds Australian collection remains the reference, and like every release in memory, there are peaks and troughs. The peaks this year are the exceptional 2018 Penfolds Bin 95 Grange Shiraz and the 2020 Penfolds Bin 144 Yattarna Chardonnay. The collection also highlights the consistency of Penfolds’ House Style, cross-regional sourcing, and staggered vintage releases (2018–2022). 2018 Penfolds Bin 95 Grange is a particularly beautiful wine, and highlights the evolution of fruit sourcing and winemaking. Although Chief Winemaker Peter Gago and his team still reference the original blueprint, the small ‘one-percenters’ over the last 30 years have taken the style to another level. Much of this work has been done in the vineyard, through meticulous management and fruit selection. But advances in winemaking techniques, technology and oak selection have also played their part. There was a waypoint in 1986, and I wonder whether 2018 might possibly be another important marker on the Grange journey. Regardless, it will be framed against the more recent great vintages (especially 1990 and 2010) for years to come. PENFOLDS BORDEAUX COLLECTION 2022 2019 Penfolds FWT 585 Cabernet Sauvignon – 95 points 2019 Penfolds II – 94 points PENFOLDS CALIFORNIAN COLLECTION 2022 2019 Penfolds Bin 149 Cabernet Sauvignon – 97 points 2019 Penfolds Bin 600 Cabernet Shiraz – 96 points 2019 Penfolds Bin 704 Cabernet Sauvignon – 93 points

Penfolds Collection 2022

2020 Penfolds Bin 144 Yattarna is also a splendid release, reflecting outstanding fruit sourcing, technical winemaking, selection and oak maturation. The wine has marvellous freshness, fruit definition, volume and tension, and should have a wonderful cellaring career ahead of it. The Tasmanian component is a significant feature of the wine. For those with a more modest budget, the 2020 Penfolds Bin 150 Marananga Shiraz is a superb example of regional definition, fruit complexity and oak integration. Also worth mentioning are the 2020 Penfolds Bin 389, which lives up to its reputation as an Australian classic, and the impressive 2020 Penfolds RWT Bin 798 Shiraz, which furthers the reputation of the 2020 Barossa vintage. This particular style is really coming into its own now, with a very good track record for cellaring. 2019 Penfolds St Henri and 2019 Penfolds Bin 169 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, both from a recognised Penfolds vintage, are also successful wines and promise a great cellaring career. 2020 Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz is a brilliantly well-made wine, as is the very expressive

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

2021 Penfolds Bin 311 Chardonnay. Of special interest is the Tasmania fruit-sourced 2021 Penfolds Bin 23 Pinot Noir. If its provenance continues in this direction, expect this series to take off now. 2020 Penfolds Bin 138 is also delicious. I prefer the primary fruit in this style and recommend it for early drinking, although it should last for some distance. In addition to the strikingly beautiful 2020 Penfolds Yattarna, the 2021 Penfolds Reserve Bin A Chardonnay and the more modestly priced 2021 Penfolds Bin 311 Chardonnay are impressive reference styles, the latter being extremely good value. All of these chardonnay-based wines have been on form for years. This is largely the work of the modest yet highly skilled Kym Schroeter, who epitomises the art and science of winemaking in this very specialised space of precision white wine winemaking. 2022 Penfolds Bin 51 Riesling is a very good example of the modern Eden Valley Riesling style, where the fruit, acidity and alcohol are neatly balanced. There was no release of Penfolds Bin 707 in 2020, reflecting a challenging growing season in the South Estate of South Australia, and the difficulty of finding cabernet sauvignon material that could make the grade. In theory, the beneficiaries of these type of years are the lower ranking Bin numbers, especially Bin 407. But judging from the results, this is not really a particularly great Cabernet Sauvignon year. Even so, 2020 Bin 389, with a large proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon, is one of the picks of the releases, highlighting the benefits of multi-regional sourcing. But no such luxury for the limited release single vineyard 2020 Penfolds Magill Estate Shiraz, which expresses the vintage in its highly individual way. 2018 Penfolds Bin 95 Grange Shiraz South Australia G 100 Deep colour. Beautiful and classic, with intense blackberry, blackcurrant dark chocolate espresso aromas and wax polish, roasted chestnut, malt notes. Superbly concentrated wine with deep-set inky blackberry, blackcurrant, dark plum, dark chocolate mocha flavours, fine chocolaty/ velvety tannins, underlying espresso, malt, oak notes and hints of aniseed. Finishes chocolaty firm with superbly integrated acidity and mineral length. A glorious year for Grange. This will last 50 years at least. Wonderful. One of the greatest vintages of all time, highlighting a superb growing season, marvellous vineyard management, the fidelity of the Penfolds house style, and generations of imagination and effort. 97% Shiraz, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Clare Valley. 18 months maturation in 100% new American oak hogsheads. Drink 2030–2060+. 14.5% alc

Penfolds Collection 2022

2020 Penfolds Bin 144 Yattarna Chardonnay Tasmania & Adelaide Hills – South Australia

G 99

Pale colour. Sublime grapefruit, white peach, pear, grilled nut aromas with fresh quartz/flinty notes. Beautifully balanced wine with pure grapefruit, white peach flavours, fine al dente textures, hint yeasty/ waxy notes, superb mid-palate volume and underlying grilled nut, marzipan notes. Finishes chalky and minerally with ample grapefruit notes. All the elements are in perfect balance. A wonderful Yattarna with superb fruit definition, complexity, richness and mineral length. Should last at least 20 years. 100% of the blend is aged for eight months in new (86%) and seasoned one-year-old (14%) oak. Drink now to 2042. 12.5% alc 2020 Penfolds Bin 150 Marananga Shiraz Barossa Valley – South Australia G 98 Medium-deep crimson. Intense liquorice, dark chocolate, blackberry aromas with toasty vanilla notes. Classical inky, blackberry, dark plum, dark chocolate flavours, vigorous fine graphite/ al dente tannins, superb roasted chestnut/ vanilla oak complexity and underlying persistent acidity. Finishes cedar firm with a brambly tannin plume. Superb density, richness and claret-like torque. A brilliant year for Bin 150. 12 months in American (24% new), French (23% new) and seasoned oak hogsheads and puncheons. Drink now to 2038. 14.5% alc 2020 Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz South Australia G 97 Deep crimson. Lovely blackberry, blackcurrant, dark plum aromas with roasted chestnut, chinotto, dark chocolate notes. Generously concentrated and beautifully integrated wine with plentiful blackberry, blackcurrant, fruits, fine slinky/ chocolaty, hint al dente/ bittersweet tannins, superb mid-palate volume, some inky complexity, lovely mocha/ espresso oak notes and fresh long juicy acidity. Builds up claret firm with graphite minerally notes. Very impressive extract, density and torque. A reference Penfolds wine. McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley and Padthaway. 12 months maturation in American (33% new) and seasoned oak hogsheads. Drink 2025–2038. 14.5% alc Deep colour. Beautiful blackberry, blackcurrant, dark chocolate, roasted chestnut, hint marzipan. Lovely plush concentrated wine with smooth blackberry, dark plum fruits, fine loose-knit slinky/ graphite tannins, underlying roasted chestnut oak and fresh mineral acidity. Finishes velvety firm with some mocha notes. Very good density, fruit richness and vigour. The Penfolds winemaking stamp nicely balanced with the opulence and beauty of ripe Barossa shiraz. 16 months in French oak (49% new, 51% one-year-old) oak hogsheads. Drink 2024–2045. 14.5% 2020 Penfolds RWT Bin 798 Shiraz Barossa Valley – South Australia G 96

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

2021 Penfolds Reserve Bin A Chardonnay Adelaide Hills – South Australia

G 96

Pale colour. Fresh camomile, lemon, lime, grapefruit, flinty aromas with hints of vanilla and marzipan. Concentrated, complex and creamy textured with ample lemon curd, grapefruit, white peach flavours, fine loose-knit slinky textures, lovely mid-palate volume and integrated fresh/ crisp acidity. Finishes al dente and minerally with tonic water notes. Very well-balanced wine with very good energy, definition and cut. Should last the distance. 72% of the blend is aged for nine months in new (50%) and seasoned one-year-old (22%) oak. Drink now to 2032. 12.5% alc 2019 Penfolds St Henri Shiraz South Australia G 95 Deep crimson. Intense black cherry, blackcurrant, roasted walnut, cacao, herb garden aromas with cedar notes. Well concentrated sweet black cherry, blackcurrant, hint strawberry fruits, and jammy notes. Some dark chocolate chinotto flavours, fine loose-knit slinky textures, very good mid-palate richness and inky density. Finishes claret firm with roasted walnut notes and attractive mineral length. More bottle age will bring all the elements together. Very expressive. McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Padthaway, Wrattonbully and emerging ‘The Peninsulas’ zone of South Australia. 12 months in large, seasoned oak vats. Drink 2024–2042. 14.5% alc 2019 Penfolds Bin 169 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon Coonawarra – South Australia G 95 Deep colour. Wax polish, dark chocolate, blackcurrant, roasted chestnut hint tobacco leaf aromas. Supple and concentrated with plentiful pure blackcurrant, blackberry, mulberry and some dark chocolate chinotto fruits, fine slinky grainy textures, pronounced vanilla/ roasted chestnut notes and persistent fresh juicy acidity. A high-pitched structure, but the elements should fold into each other with some bottle age. It should be worth the wait. A classic claret style. 17 months in French oak (56% new, 44% one-year-old) oak hogsheads. Drink 2024–2040. 14.5% alc 2020 Penfolds Bin 28 Shiraz South Australia G 95 Medium-deep crimson. Classic dark chocolate espresso dark berry aromas with malty/ liquorice notes. Lovely choco-berry fruits, some cola/ chinotto/ roasted coffee notes, fine supple loose-knit grainy tannins, very good mid-palate density and underlying savoury complexity. Finishes velvety firm and minerally. Very Penfoldsian with lovely intensity, chocolaty richness and energy. Where less can be more. McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Padthaway and Clare Valley. 12 months maturation in American oak (16% new) hogsheads. Drink now to 2034. 14.5% alc

Penfolds Collection 2022

2021 Penfolds Bin 311 Chardonnay Adelaide Hills – South Australia & Tasmania

G 95

Pale colour. Very expressive lime, grapefruit aromas with flinty, tonic water notes. Generously flavoured palate with plentiful lime squash, grapefruit notes, fine slinky textures, lovely mid-palate creaminess, underlying toasty complexity and long fresh quartz-like acidity. Superb mineral length. Very much in the idiom of a Premier Cru. Delicious drinking. 66% of the blend is aged for nine months in new (38%) and seasoned one-year-old (28%) oak. Drink now to 2028. 12.5% alc 2022 Penfolds Bin 51 Riesling, Eden Valley, Barossa Eden Valley – South Australia G 95 Pale colour. Pure camomile, verbena, lime, lemon curd aromas with hint yeasty notes. Well composed wine with classical pure round lemon, lime flavours, fine lacy textures and fine crystalline acidity. Finishes long and minerally. Bittersweet notes give lovely vinosity. Very good volume despite the moderate to low alcohol. Drink now to 2030. 11.5% alc 2021 Penfolds Bin 23 Pinot Noir Tasmania G 94 Medium-deep crimson. Lovely pure strawberry, red cherry aromas with vanilla, herb notes. Buoyant, generous and supple with dense strawberry, red cherry, hint sappy fruits, fine chalky textures, very good mid-palate density/ viscosity and underlying roasted walnut, hint vanilla notes. Finishes chalky with ample red fruits. The quality of the Tasmanian fruit shines through. Very good amplitude and freshness. A brilliant new direction for Bin 23. Best to drink early to enjoy the primary fruit expression, but it has the density and balance to keep for a while. Eight months in French oak barriques (40% new). Drink now to 2027. 13.5% alc 2020 Penfolds Bin 138 Shiraz, Grenache, Mataro Barossa Valley – South Australia G 93 Medium-deep crimson. Very attractive musky plum, blackberry, blueberry aromas with hints of roasted walnut. Supple sweet-fruited palate with ample red and dark plums, cranberry, mulberry, red cherry fruits, some savoury/ roasted walnut complexity, fine loose-knit chalky textures, very good mid-palate viscosity and fresh integrated and persistent crisp acidity. Lovely fruit-driven finish with aniseed notes. Not for the long haul but a delicious gluggable drink. 12 months in French oak hogsheads (12.5% new). Drink now to 2026. 14.5 % alc

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

2020 Penfolds Magill Estate Shiraz Adelaide – South Australia

G 92

Deep crimson. Attractive dark chocolate, mulberry, redcurrant, liquorice all sorts aromas with vanilla notes. Generously concentrated with ample blackberry, damson plum fruits, fine chalky-textured bittersweet tannins, some brambly notes and underlying savoury/ vanilla roasted chestnut/ hint coconut notes. Finishes firm and minerally with plentiful sweet fruit notes. Sweet, savoury and earthy. An important albeit awkward wine, based on remnant and historic vineyard land, first established in 1844. 15 months in French (30% new/ 40% one-year old) and American (30% one-year-old) oak hogsheads. Drink now to 2034. 14.5% alc 2020 Penfolds Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon South Australia G 92 Medium-deep crimson. Chinotto, blackcurrant, herb garden, sage aromas with some violet/ chinotto notes. Supple blackcurrant, herb flavours, fine slinky/ touch sinewy tannins and some savoury/ vanilla complexity. Builds up grippy/ sappy firm at the finish. A compact Cabernet style with very good density and vigour. Best to drink in the medium term. McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, Padthaway, Wrattonbully. 15 months in French (24%) American (12%) and seasoned oak hogsheads.

Drink now to 2030. 14.5% alc 2020 Penfolds Bin 128 Shiraz Coonawarra – South Australia

G 91

Medium-deep crimson. Intense pure blackberry, blackcurrant, graphite aromas with hints of vanilla/ herb garden. Inky and sweet fruited with plentiful pure dark and red fruits, fine slinky textures, lovely underlying vanilla/ roasted chestnut notes and fresh crisp acidity. Finishes slinky/ grippy with some roasted walnut, hint iodine/sappy notes. 12 months maturation in French oak hogsheads (20% new) Drink now to 2028. 14.5% alc

Penfolds Collection 2022

Penfolds V Preview After the success of Penfolds G4 and G5, it was probably inevitable that this should be followed by a similar project using parcels of back-vintage Yattarna. The thinking behind Penfolds V was to seek out optimal vintages from the last decade and blend the components into a single multi-vintage Yattarna Chardonnay. This idea is not new in Champagne, where reserve wine is used to promote complexity and richness of flavour. In many respects, this type of wine reflects the idea of an all- round blend which can be enjoyed immediately, rather than having to wait for the elements to fold into each other. But well-balanced examples can often last the distance as well. Penfolds V comprises 20% each of the 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2021 vintages of Yattarna. Back vintages were carefully drawn out of bottles into a stainless steel vat on the 5th May, using a Champagne decanting technique known as ‘transvasage’, which prevents oxidation and colour pick-up. This was followed by bottling under inert conditions a few days later, on the 9th May 2022. The preview tasting took place immediately after the collection tasting in late June. In Bordeaux it is common to taste white wines after a succession of reds. Penfolds V has plenty going for it, but I think it will look better once the wine is settled. Nonetheless, it’s fresh and complex, with lovely energy and suppleness. From experience, the wine will open up in the months ahead. Penfolds V South Australia G 96 + A blend of 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016 & 2021 Yattarna vintages. Pale colour. Fresh lemon curd, grapefruit, tonic water/ oyster shell aromas with marzipan, vanilla grilled nut notes. Attractive sweet grapefruit glacé, lemon curd, hint apricot fruits, fine slinky textures, creamy viscosity, and underlying saline/ tonic water notes. Finishes bittersweet with long fresh acidity. Very expressive and interesting palimpsest of flavours and structure. Youthful yet complex. A paradox. Drink 2023–2035.

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

Penfolds Collection 2022 Bordeaux, France © Leif Carlsson

Penfolds Bordeaux Collection – 2022 Release The new French venture, in partnership with Dourthe, is particularly enlightened. Matthieu Chadronnier, managing director of negociant company CVBG Dourthe, is one of the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic supporters of the ‘Beyond Bordeaux’ category, which is making significant inroads into this very specialised and extraordinary fine wine distribution channel. Bordeaux wine merchants are massively effective and reach parts of the world of fine wine that many New World wine producers have been unable to crack. The promising Dourthe Penfolds collaboration takes the Beyond Bordeaux category to a new level. It is now 72 years since Max Schubert visited the region and imagined Grange. But now, generational ambitions are on an equal footing. This joint project is a team effort between Emma Wood and Dourthe’s Frederic Bonnaffous, both highly skilled winemakers, each bringing different perspectives. On the one side there is an ambition to amplify the Penfolds aesthetic, and on the other an aspiration to bring out the best of Dourthe’s terroirs in

Emma Wood

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

the Medoc. This push me–pull you type of winemaking has created a spirit of experimentation and open-mindedness. If both parties stay the course, and egos stay in check, this could lead to something meaningful and special. Chief Winemaker Peter Gago, who oversees the project and works with the team to select the final outcome, points out that the refined and practiced Penfolds classification tasting process is the final determinant of quality and style. But, of course, with Dourthe’s experience with Cabernet and the less well known varieties Merlot and Petit Verdot (from an Australian perspective), there seems to be very good technical exchange and mutual respect. Having known the actors on both sides of the equation for a very long time, I think this partnership has some real legs and I am looking forward to seeing what comes next! The 2019 Penfolds ‘French Winemaking Trial’ 585 is the first 100% Penfolds Bordeaux wine, and is based on Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. This collaboration has yielded a very impressive first vintage. It offers regional authenticity with a subtle Penfoldsian look. While it’s a work in progress, it holds up against the Grand Cru circus, although the intent is not to frame it within this context. The technical exchange behind the scenes and new outlooks towards sourcing and winemaking – on both sides of the equation – make this wine the most fascinating of the Penfolds Collection 2022 release. The Franco–South Australian 2019 Penfolds II is self-described as ‘aspiringly lofty’. The complicated wine laws mean that it is labelled as Cabernet Sauvignon – France/ Shiraz – South Australia, putting it in the category of an international Vin de Table. The Shiraz parcel was vinified six months before the Cabernet parcels, and the final blends and bottling took place in South Australia. But, of course, like many ambitious projects, this wine would stretch the black-and-white minds of lawmakers. This first vintage is something of a curio. It will be fascinating to see how the fruit and oak fold into each other over time. It is really an experimental release, and only more vintages of this type and track record will tell. There is always a chance that this wine will be seen as historic one day. Peter Gago, never short of imagination, said, ‘This wine is not about bigness or boldness or assertion. It is blended to convey an ethereal lightness, subtlety on the palate, sensitively binding two hemispheres, Old World and New.’

Penfolds Collection 2022

2019 Penfolds FWT 585 Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot & Petit Verdot Haut Medoc – France

G 95

Medium-deep crimson. Fresh inky blackcurrant, dark plum aromas with chinotto, hint roasted chestnut, malty notes. Classical claret-style palate with fresh blackcurrant, dark plum fruits, fine slinky/ grainy tannins, very good mid-palate richness and underlying roasted chestnut/ mocha notes. Finishes cedar firm with chinotto, dark fruits. Very smooth, supple and detailed with attractive volume and vigour. An impressive first edition showing clear regional origins and a sotto voce Penfolds imprint. Discrete, precise and approachable. 100% maturation for 14 months in new French (44%) and new American (14%) oak. Penfolds first Bordeaux claret! Drink now to 2030. alc 14%

2019 Penfolds II Dourthe x Penfolds Cabernet Shiraz Merlot Bordeaux, France & Barossa Valley, Australia blend

G 94

Deep crimson. Intense blackcurrant, dark plum, dark chocolate aromas with roasted chestnut, malty oak notes. Full-bodied claret style with abundant blackcurrant, dark plum, mulberry, cedar flavours, chocolaty textures, malty, roasted chestnut notes, and integrated mineral acidity. Very generous and classically Penfolds, with meaty, barrel ferment notes and prominent malt/ mocha oak dominating the palate. Finishes chocolaty firm. A largely successful experimental blend, although elemental and unformed. Should settle down in a few more years. Maturation in new French (70%) and new American (30%) oak barriques and hogsheads. Blended and bottled in South Australia. Drink 2026–2038 14% alc

The Vintage Journal – Verticals

Penfolds Californian Collection – 2022 Release Penfolds Californian wines are typically opulent styles and show the kindred spirit of Californian and Australian vinestock. 2019 Penfolds Bin 149, described as a wine of the world, is a Napa Valley–South Australian blend and works impressively well. It’s worth remembering that the Australian component was vintaged six months before California’s, and so the concept of maturation time is blurred. All the same, the components integrate seamlessly, and the wine should enjoy a long cellaring career. The same also applies to the 2019 Penfolds Bin 600 Cabernet Shiraz, which has hallmarks of South Australian winemaking but fully amplifies the power and energy of Californian Cabernet. The Shiraz component does the job of filling the mid palate and adding plushness, but the torque in the Cabernet drives the flavours across the palate with impressive velocity. The wine is strangely familiar, yet distant, perhaps reflecting the cross-Pacific nature of the wine.

Penfolds Collection 2022 Camatta Hills , USA

The Vintage Journal – Verticals Gamble Ranch, USA

2019 Penfolds Bin 149 Cabernet Sauvignon Wine of the World – Napa Valley & South Australia

G 97

United States & Australia

Deep crimson. A profoundly complex wine with beautiful dark cherry, blackcurrant mocha aromas, hints of rose garden and graphite. Dense and richly flavoured with pure blackcurrant/ black cherry fruits, fine loose-knit bittersweet chocolaty textures, well balanced mocha/ vanilla oak and fresh long mineral acidity. Finishes cedar firm with seductive dark fruits. Very impressive wine with presence, potential longevity and finesse. Maturation for 17 months in new French (80%) and new American (20%) oak. Drink 2024–2040+. 14.5% alc

2019 Penfolds Bin 600 Cabernet Shiraz Napa Valley, Sonoma and Paso Robles California, United States of America

G 96

Deep crimson. Complex dark chocolate, chinotto, blackberry pastille, hint raspberry aromas with wax polish notes. Richly concentrated, voluminous and smooth with seductive blackberry pastille, blackcurrant, roasted coffee, mocha/ malt flavours, fine grainy/ cedar-like tannins, lovely mid-palate volume and fresh long acidity. Finishes chocolaty firm and long. A lovely wine with ample sweet fruit notes, richness and torque. Maturation for 17 months in new (40%) and seasoned American oak. Drink now to 2038. 14.5% alc

2019 Penfolds Bin 704 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, California

G 93

United States of America

Deep crimson. Very fragrant mulberry, boysenberry, blackcurrant pastille aromas with dark chocolate, hint black olive notes. Smooth and velvety wine with plentiful choco-berry fruits, sweet vanilla/ spicy oak, fine-grained textures and long fresh lacy acidity. Velvety smooth wine with very good density, raspberry glacé sweetness and aniseed/ red liquorice notes at the finish. This is a full-bodied, distinctive Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon with its core of sweet fruit, palate weight and suppleness. The Penfolds style lurks in the background somewhere. 100% maturation in new (40%) and seasoned French oak. Drink now to 2035. 14.5% alc

Penfolds Collection 2022

Special Bin Commemoration – 60th Anniversary

Penfolds Special Bins hold a special significance and place among generations of Australian wine collectors. Some of the early examples are prototypes for masterpieces, including Grange and Bin 707. Other, later bottlings are exploratory blends to understand how varieties or regional fruit interact. Since Max Schubert’s first experimental bottlings of Bin 1 Grange Hermitage, Penfolds has been at the forefront of fine winemaking in Australia. The Penfolds red winemaking style has been developed and improved through its ongoing limited production of Special Bin vintages. This tradition still continues in the modern era with new imaginative experimental wines and collaborative projects. STORY OF BIN 60A 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, Kalimna Shiraz, a Coonawarra–Barossa Valley blend, is one of the most famous wines of

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the 20th century and a colossus in the canon of Australian wine. Although it wasn’t commercially released (yet bottles found their way into the market in various ways), it enjoyed an astonishing wine show career and established a mythical status within the Australian wine community and beyond. As a biographer of the Penfolds brand and erstwhile wine auctioneer, I have been privileged to see the wine on many occasions through myriad forums, dinners and tastings over 35 years. Whenever I taste or drink the wine, it is like catching up with an old friend who is rarely out of sorts. Although the frequency has diminished over the years, it will always remain a standout all-time great. At a recent Penfolds dinner in Bordeaux, with a distinguished guest list of winemakers and international journalists, we were treated to a perfect example of this most famous wine. While it does not have the Churchillian references of 1945 Ch Mouton Rothschild, the transformative 1962 Bin 60A paved the way for ultra-fine Australian wine and brought kudos and fame to Coonawarra. The Barossa component gave the wine richness and volume, but it was the expressive cool climate cabernet that turned heads at the time. The South Australian Cabernet Shiraz blend, where the woof of cabernet and weft of shiraz magically intertwines, also took off as a classic red wine style during the 1960s. Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz has since become a wine collector’s stalwart and rarely disappoints. And every now and again, Penfolds releases an homage to Bin 60A, some of which have established very good secondary market currency. 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon Kalimna Shiraz South Australia 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A is one of the greatest Australian wines ever made. In a world where egos readily clashed, the 1962 Penfold Bin 60A unified wine critics and show judges. It is Penfolds’ most successful show wine, winning 19 trophies and 33 gold medals. A confluence of oenological, physical and philosophical achievement, 1962 Bin 60A was a cross- regional blend which exemplified the emerging Penfolds house wine style and the compelling attributes of blending Cabernet with Shiraz. In seeking his ‘ethereal’ wine, Max Schubert identified that the perfumed cassis/violet aromas, elegant flavours and fine-grained tannins of cool climate Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon could be complemented with the warm climate characteristics of ripe fruit and round chocolaty textures of Barossa Valley Shiraz.

Penfolds Collection 2022

The fame of Bin 60A has reached all corners of the globe. Max Schubert’s direct contemporary Andre Tchelistcheff (1901–1994), the founding father of the modern California wine industry, once announced to a room of startled Napa Valley vignerons, ‘Gentlemen, you will all stand in the presence of this wine!’ Australian winemakers generally acknowledge the wine as a modern classic of profound and enduring academic importance. Leading critic Len Evans (1930–2006), who apparently brought that bottle to California, once described the wine as ‘one of the great reds I cut my palate on, and proved forever that the two varieties can blend beautifully together’. James Halliday, Australia’s leading wine author, once described it as ‘an utterly superb wine, a glorious freak of nature and Man; ethereal and beguiling, yet the palate is virtually endless, with a peacock’s tail stolen from the greatest of Burgundies; the fruit sweetness perfectly offset by acidity rather than VA. The 100-point dry red? Why not?’ and gut-feel transcend numbers. Max Schubert pushed boundaries, because he wasn’t constrained by scientific dogma and he dared to believe in himself. Peter Gago, Penfold’s Chief Winemaker The stories of Grange and the legendary 1962 Bin 60A Cabernet Shiraz epitomise how imagination

SOURCES Penfolds Collection 2022 The Australian Ark , to be published 2023

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Penfolds Collection 2022

About the Author Andrew Caillard MW is the author of several books including Penfolds: The Rewards of Patience (six editions), Imagining Coonawarra, A Travel Through Time (the history of leading Spanish winery Marques de Riscal) and co-authored educational books Australian Wine and A Taste Around The World of Wine . The Essence of Dreams (the history of the Mornington Peninsula’s wine industry) will be published in 2022. Andrew has also written a definitive history of Australian wine with plans for publication in 2023. The Vintage Journal draws on research, experience and tasting expertise gathered during over 40 years working in the secondary market, the corporate retail world, the wine media, film and painting.

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