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| Community Tasting Notes (average 92.9 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 16 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by MC2 Wines on 10/6/2023: Just amazing. Last bottle at the restaurant which had been there for at least 15 years but who knows how long. The cork disintegrated almost right away so needed to be decanted but def benefitted from the air. From the beg the nose was that very intoxicating grange style and as it opened up lots of blackberry and eucalyptus and just generally lifted. It was exceptional. (625 views) | | | Tasted by G_H on 3/28/2023 & rated 96 points: From a pristine, reliable source, this bottle was shining bright. Served blind next to ‘89 and ‘01, it was the winner, with people guessing 70’s. So much for ‘challenging vintage’.
It’s the only 1969 Grange I have ever tasted, so I can’t generalize, but just from reading up, I would never have guessed that vintage. It was clearly mature, but in the best way possible. It was delicious after 5 minutes and while it didn’t improve with, it maintained the high level with air
Freshly ground espresso beans, BBQ-Sauce, Coke, malted chocolate, porcini mushrooms, reminded me of my favorite Choco-Coffee Burger (at Parkers Dubai). All this intertwined with some more traditional mature Bordeaux notes of forest-floor, dried leaves and leather.
What a wine and what a surprise! (537 views) | | | Tasted by aquacongas on 2/20/2022 & rated 95 points: not blind
This was a wine I dreamt of. Maybe a touch over his peak but still delicious. Spicy but ripe sweet fruits. Ripe soft tannins but still good acidity structure. Thanks Marc. 95 (1452 views) | | | Tasted by MQuentel@web.de on 9/13/2020 & rated 85 points: Developed nose with aromas of port wine (tawny), meat broth and dark chocolate. On the palate a slightly oxidative start, but afterwards it still shows remains of dark, partially preserved fruit and chocolate; also again notes of port wine; oxidation is undoubtedly present, light maltiness and a hint of menthol. Slim on the palate, is carried by the acidity, the tannin is almost degraded and the wine is overall clearly over the hill. This was never a great wine, the year in Australia was too bad for that - a lot of rain and rotting problems. Penfolds awards 1 of 5 stars for the vintage. For lovers of tertiary aromas - hurry up when drinking. Good bottles up to 87 points. (1997 views) | | | Tasted by CamWheeler on 11/30/2019 & rated 92 points: PR 1969 Extravaganza: Sesame, caramel, VA, black fruits and red currant on the nose. Holding up really well on the palate, medium depth and with some red fruit still in place. Gets even better with a bit of air, showing a bit more depth and texture. This bottle was at its final peak. (2558 views) | | | Tasted by SimonPh on 10/5/2019 & rated 94 points: One of the best examples from 1969, soft tannins, but still lovely bouquet of forest floor and mushroom, and warm soft leather on the palate. Clean finish and excellent with steak to the last drop (albeit with some sediment). (2378 views) | | | Tasted by SimonPh on 9/9/2019 & rated 93 points: Excellent bottle, been through Penfolds clinic, lovely meaty, chocolate and leather flavours. (2200 views) | | | Tasted by SimonPh on 4/5/2019 & rated 94 points: Excellent condition, having been through the Penfolds Clinic. Wonderful leather and soft tannins. (1705 views) | | | Tasted by walkerjfw on 7/23/2018 & rated 94 points: Zurich Supper Club Rides Again...in London (CVA, Andrew, Paolo...missing Benoit...) (67 Pall Mall - London, UK): A generous contribution from Andrew, our go-to source for aged Grange in this group. He has sources with impeccable bottles with great provenance, hard to find anywhere in the world like this...cork came out clean, decanted and drank over the course of the evening.
Medium ruby/garnet, some bricking on the edges. Expressive and distinct nose: aged red fruits, leather, cedar. Palate showing dusted black cherry, earth, cedar, and coffee. Showed some caramel on mid palate and through the finish, along with classic Grange leather.. Medium weight and long finish - especially given the age of this bottle
A real treat to drink this wine, well aged Grange seems almost timeless and never confused with other wines. Pretty impressive wine approaching its 50th b-day...wine drank well for the first hour plus, peaked and rolled over about 90 minutes in. (2355 views) | | | Tasted by graemeg on 2/6/2017: NobleRottersSydney - Penfolds prior to 2007 (360 Bar & Dining, Sydney): {cork} (Geoffrey) Double-decanted 3 hrs earlier. Very dark, with all brick tinges; more brown than red really. Leathery, earthy nose. Not too bacterial though. The palate has lost most of its tannin, offering varnished highlights of ancient red fruits. Acid has the dominant hand here now; the wine is medium-bodied, with leathery old flavours. Finish remains impressively medium/long though, despite it seeming just a bit simple for the reputation of Grange. Still, for 48 years, and from an ‘average’ vintage, heavy criticism is a bit churlish; this is a pretty spectacular effort, all things considered. (3050 views) | | | Tasted by SimonPh on 9/5/2014 & rated 93 points: Wonderful old chocolate and leather (3270 views) | | | Tasted by danielk168 on 7/27/2013 & rated 92 points: Cork was perfect, and this bottle sings, complex aromas of cooked fruits, minerals, balanced and silky. (4149 views) | | | Tasted by bongos on 5/10/2013: Decidedly lighter and more easy going than the 68. Leans more on the red fruit spectrum and is well balanced by lively acidity. Burgundy lovers at the table prefered this while the bordeaux fans gave the nod to the 68. (4210 views) | | | Tasted by Peech on 12/27/2009 & rated 95 points: nose was initially plastic and a bit chalky (this should have given me the hint as old Grange can be chalky), with sweet strawberry notes giving way to coffee and Asian spices. Pretty smooth on the palate with light tannins. (4537 views) | | | Tasted by graemeg on 5/4/2009: NobleRottersSydney - Penfolds prior to 2000 (Alio's, Surrey Hills): [cork, 12.4%] 5% Cabernet. A graduate of the 1992 Red Wine Clinic. The bouquet has soft leathery aromas, clearly aged, but not feeble. The palate ticks all the ‘medium’ boxes; weight, acid, finish. It’s soft and even, with hints of woody spices and a velvety kind of feel to the texture. Gently persistent, with resolved tannins, and a lingering wispy finish. Perhaps not a great Grange, but a great 40-year-old red. No improvement left, obviously, but ought to make the half-century if you’re a child of ’69… (4714 views) |
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About Us
Australia's winemaking history of less than two hundred years is brief by European measures though, like Europe, punctuated by periods of extreme success and difficult times. From the earliest winemaking days Penfolds has figured prominently and few would argue the importance of Penfolds’ influence on Australia’s winemaking psyche.
Without the influence of Penfolds the modern Australian wine industry would look very different indeed. Sitting comfortably outside of fad and fashion, Penfolds has taken Australian wine to the world on a grand stage and forged a reputation for quality that is without peer.
Penfolds’ reputation for making wines of provenance and cellaring potential might suggest a mantle of tradition and formality is the preferred attire of a company with so much history to defend. But to label Penfolds as simply an established and conventional winemaker, would be to confuse tradition with consideration and to overlook the innovative spirit that has driven Penfolds since its foundation, and continues to find expression in modern times.
If there is anything traditional about Penfolds, it is the practice of constantly reviewing the wines it already does well, and continuously evolving and refining styles as vineyards mature and access to ever older and more varied vineyard sites improves.
Making The Best Possible Wine
At Penfolds, the role of the winemaker is to make the best possible wine within the constraints of each vintage. Penfolds’ house style emerged from a fortified-wine producing culture and evolved as a winemaking philosophy – a way of making wine – which has had a profound effect on the entire Australian wine industry.
The concept of multi-regional and vineyard blending, a feature of the Penfolds house style, is an amplification of the ‘all-round wine’. Without the constraints of a single vineyard, winemakers could choose the best possible fruit with the outstanding characteristics of each vineyard.
While American oak has played a central role in the development of Penfolds red wines, French oak has been increasingly used in the evolution of new wines – particularly RWT and Yattarna. Maturation in oak, which follows fermentation, is also key to the Penfolds house style.
The Penfolds approach to winemaking has percolated through the entire Australian wine industry over the last 50 years. The techniques employed in research and development of Penfolds wines are remarkable and many of the discoveries and innovations have had a lasting impact on winemaking thinking.
Winemakers
In Max Schubert, Don Ditter, John Duval and Peter Gago, Penfolds has nurtured four of Australia's great winemakers. They have passed the Chief Winemaker’s baton of responsibility for crafting some of Australia's most iconic wines, down through the past six decades.
Joining Peter Gago in the Penfolds winemaking team are Senior Red Winemaker Steve Lienert, Senior White Winemaker Kym Schroeter, and Red Winemakers Andrew Baldwin, Adam Clay, Stephanie Dutton and Matt Woo - also the Penfolds Fortified Winemaker. All members of the Penfolds winemaking team ensure that Penfolds’ reputation for outstanding quality is upheld.
Vineyards
Barossa Valley
Penfolds draws fruit from a combined vineyard area of 618 hectares in the Barossa region of South Australia. The Barossa is about 70 kilometres north of Adelaide and in 1911 Penfolds established a winery at Nuriootpa, completed in time for the 1913 vintage. The Barossa region is known for its relatively low rainfall with many vineyards dry grown on single wire trellising.
Magill Estate
The historic and heritage-protected Magill Estate Vineyard was established in 1844 by Dr Christopher Rawson and Mary Penfold—just eight years after the foundation of Adelaide. It was originally known as the Grange Vineyard, named after their new homestead ‘The Grange’, a cottage which still stands intact amongst the vines.
Eden Valley
Joseph Gilbert planted the first vines in the Eden Valley in 1842 and since that time the region has become synonymous with producing elegant riesling and complex shiraz. While its name suggests a concave nature, Eden Valley is actually a wide ridge, situated east of the Barossa Valley with an altitude ranging from 440 – 550 metres.
McLaren Vale
McLaren Vale is located approximately 40km to the south of Adelaide, with the vineyards in the region located between 6 and 15 kilometres from the Gulf of St Vincent. The elevation ranges from 50 to 350 metres above sea level. Penfolds has company owned vineyards throughout the region, using the fruit as blending components for premium red wines such as Grange and Bin 389.
Coonawarra
Penfolds has had a long history with the Coonawarra region, dating back to their first vineyard purchase in 1960. It is one of the most famous red wine regions in Australia with weathered limestone terra rossa soils, relatively cool climate and overall water availability. Coonawarra has played a significant role in many of Penfolds' multi-regional wines as well as the single region wines such as Bin 128.
James Halliday Australian Wine Companion Winery Of The Year 2014: Penfolds
Penfolds is Australia’s foremost winemaker, with an unbroken line dating back to its establishment in 1844 when medical practitioner Dr Christopher Rawson Penfold and wife Mary purchased ‘the delightfully situated and truly valuable of Mackgill … Comprising 500 acres (202 hectares) of the choicest land’. Here they built the house that still stands today, and within a few years had begun the winery and cellar on the site of today’s buildings at Magill Estate.
Mary took charge of winemaking, initially producing grenache prescribed by her husband as a tonic for anaemic patients. By 1870 she, son-in-law Thomas Hyland and cellar manager/winemaker Joseph Gillard had formed Penfolds & Co. With markets in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales, their wine production was over one-third of South Australia’s total.
Growth continued unabated, and in 1945 Penfolds acquired the jewel of the Magill Vineyard, at that time the largest vineyard in South Australia. It now has 2100 hectares of vineyards, the largest share of Australia’s total. Two men came together in the 1950s to lay the foundation of Penfolds today: winemaker Max Schubert, and research chemist Ray Beckwith (who died shortly after his 100th birthday in 2012); indeed, their contribution transcended Penfolds to the entire Australian wine industry.
The architecture for the Penfolds wine portfolio of the twenty-first century was established in the 1960s, half a century ago. There has been growth, both in the range of labels and their price points, but it has been cleverly – indeed sensitively – managed; demand-driven growth has been achieved without any quality compromise whatsoever.
There is no possibility that the pre-eminence of Penfolds will ever be challenged by any other Australian wine business. Equally certain is that the Penfolds brand value will continue to gain ground on the world stage of all consumable products. If proof be needed, the overall quality of the wines in this Wine Companion is the best Penfolds has ever presented to the markets of the globe.
Author: James Halliday Jul 20131969 Penfolds GrangeBin 95 Grange Hermitage
Released as Bin 95 (also Bin 826).Penfolds GrangeLangton's The Definitive Grange Guide (includes 2006 vintage)
http://www.langtons.com.au/images/pdfs/grange_guide.pdf
The Rewards of Patience (7th Edition)
Vintage Label Shiraz Cabernet
2010 Bin 95 Grange 96% 4%
2009 Bin 95 Grange 98% 2%
2008 Bin 95 Grange 98% 2%
2007 Bin 95 Grange 98% 2%
2006 Bin 95 Grange 98% 2%
2005 Bin 95 Grange 96% 4%
2004 Bin 95 Grange 96% 4%
2003 Bin 95 Grange 97% 3%
2002 Bin 95 Grange 98.5% 1.5%
2001 Bin 95 Grange 99% 1%
2000 Bin 95 Grange 100%
1999 Bin 95 Grange 100%
1998 Bin 95 Grange 97% 3%
1997 Bin 95 Grange 96% 4%
1996 Bin 95 Grange 94% 6%
1995 Bin 95 Grange 94% 6%
1994 Bin 95 Grange 89% 11%
1993 Bin 95 Grange 86% 14%
1992 Bin 95 Grange 90% 10%
1991 Bin 95 Grange 95% 5%
1990 Bin 95 Grange 95% 5%
1989 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 91% 9%
1988 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 94% 6%
1987 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1986 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 87% 13%
1985 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 99% 1%
1984 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 95% 5%
1983 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 94% 6%
1982 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 94% 6%
1981 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 89% 11%
1980 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 96% 4%
1979 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 87% 13%
1978 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1977 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 91% 9%
1976 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 89% 11%
1975 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1974 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 93% 7%
1973 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 98% 2%
1972 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1971 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 87% 13%
1970 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1969 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 95% 5%
1969 Bin 826 Grange Hermitage
1968 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 94% 6%
1968 Bin 826 Grange Hermitage
1967 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 94% 6%
1967 Bin 74 Grange Hermitage
1966 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 88% 12%
1966 Bin 72 Grange Hermitage
1966 Bin 71 Grange Hermitage
1965 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 95% 5%
1965 Bin 71 Grange Hermitage
1965 Bin 70 Grange Hermitage
1965 Bin 69 Grange Hermitage
1964 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1964 Bin 68 Grange Hermitage
1964 Bin 67 Grange Hermitage
1964 Bin 66 Grange Hermitage
1964 Bin 395 Grange Hermitage
1963 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 100%
1963 Bin 65 Grange Hermitage
1962 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 87% 13%
1962 Bin 456 Grange Hermitage
1962 Bin 59A Grange Hermitage
1962 Bin 59 Grange Hermitage
1961 Bin 395 Grange Hermitage 88% 12%
1961 Bin 395 Grange Hermitage
1960 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 92% 8%
1960 Bin 45 Grange Hermitage
1959 Bin 46 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1959 Bin 49 Grange Hermitage
1959 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage
1958 Bin 46 Grange Hermitage 94% 6%
1957 Bin 50 Grange Hermitage 88% 12%
1956 Bin 14 Grange Hermitage 96% 4%
1955 Bin 95 Grange Hermitage 90% 10%
1955 Bin 148A Grange Hermitage
1955 Bin 54 Grange Hermitage
1955 Bin 53 Grange Hermitage
1955 Bin 14 Grange Hermitage
1955 Bin 13 Grange Hermitage
1954 Bin 12 Grange Hermitage 98% 2%
1954 Bin 11 Grange Hermitage
1953 Bin 2 Grange Hermitage 87% 13%
1953 Bin 145 Grange Hermitage
1953 Bin 86C Grange Hermitage
1953 Bin 10 Grange Hermitage
1953 Bin 9 Grange Cabernet Sauvignon (Block 42) 100%
1952 Bin 4 Grange Hermitage 100%
1952 Bin 4A Grange Hermitage
1951 Bin 1 Grange Hermitage 100%
Shiraz BlendViognierGrangePenfold's Rewards Of Patience
http://www.grange.biz/library/rewards/bin-95-grange.pdf
Australia Wine Australia (Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation) | Australian Wines (Wikipedia)South Australia South Australian Wine Industry Association | South Australian Wines (Wikipedia) |
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