1996 Penfolds Cabernet Sauvignon Kalimna Block 42

Community Tasting Notes (21) Avg Score: 94.2 points

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  1/21/2023 - Vintage1961 Likes this wine: 94 Points

  Cork was great, stained half way.
  Mid to dark red. Nose; soft dark sweet fruit, lots of secondary nuances leading the nose. Tobacco, spice, leather, oak, toast,smoke and sandalwood. Quite perfumed but soft. Palate complex, soft, smooth, balanced, (is that mint?). The quality of the fruit used is evidenced by the nose and palate. Very soft, open and delicious. I'd drink this now. Drunk along side 407 from 1996, the 407 was excellent and had more backbone, where as the quality of the fruit and production on Block 42 was on a slightly higher level. However, when you compare price........no contest. Day 2, this wine stood up pretty well. Nose still sweet, more muted but palate was rich, luxurious and silky.

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  12/21/2022 - ubercuvee wrote:

  Tight, backwards - not at all as aromatically expressive a the 2004 vintage we opened alongside it

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  8/20/2022 - Rote Kappelle Likes this wine: 95 Points

  As with any Penfolds, this is going to be largely about how you relate to the style. This wine broke me out of a certain ennui and so I feel well disposed to it.
  
  Under cork for some reason, my bottle seems to be in fairly good condition. Decanted, scored as 'Rather jolly good, memsahib' on the Raj version of Cellar Tracker. Note made about 7 hours after opening.
  
  The colour is what you'd expect from Penfolds - deep and with little fading to the rim. There is some definite brick but also more crimson than i would expect given the age of the wine.
  
  The nose is luxurious; massive, potent, polished leather, pencil shavings (another take might be eucalyptus, but I don't get the menthol aspect when I sniff - others will), blackberry more than cassis, some earth and the effect is of a huge Chesterfield lounge that you can disappear into.
  
  The palate is what actually excites me. The reason is that I was not so excited by the nose - it isn't really what I want in a Cabernet and it was just too rich and sweet. The palate has a surprising lightness in the mouth - not a lack of intensity or length but a surprisingly ethereal feel. The tannins are soft at first and then they come in fine and supportive. What was blackberry on the nose is more like blackcurrant jam in the mouth.
  
  This is really more Penfolds than it is varietal but that mouthfeel and surprising Mahomed Ali combination of heavy weight boxer and dancing feet make the wine. Without that I would be done after a few mouthfuls.
  
  A friend noted that this is one of the oldest Cabernet vineyards in the world, thanks to the ravages elsewhere of Phylloxera.

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  6/4/2022 - Philip67 Does not like this wine: 89 Points

  This shows as old, cooked with over ripe fruit. A huge disappointment as I had been waiting to try a bottle for a long time. It is certainly full bodied and rich but lacks structure. Overtones of prunes, stewed berries and leather. Lacks any freshness or lift. This is over the hill, probably best drunk 10 years ago, though I doubt it ever had much vibrancy. Reading the other notes makes me wonder whether this has been poorly stored but on reflection it is the structure of the wine that is the problem.

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  5/30/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine: 95 Points

  A rarity that this wine, which was produced only in 6 vintages: 1953, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1996 and 2004. For the anecdote, it is this wine which was chosen for the vials that the estate sells for $ 100,000.
  
  Plot of old vines (110 years) of cabernet sauvignon.
  
  The nose exudes classicism and elegance: spices, eucalyptus, black fruits, cigars ... There are plenty of choices and it's very changeable.
  
  The palate is surprisingly delicate, the touch is soft, with a juice of a magnificent texture. There is still a lot of freshness and youth in this bottle, it is undeniable, especially with this underlying eucalyptus which enlivens the wine, giving it a beautiful acidity which gives life to a loose, silky but generous substance. It is of rare elegance and with aeration come heady aromas of faded rose. The finish on cedar and menthol is bright, with a saltiness rarely seen and melted tannins.
  
  Excellent, very European in the interpretation, although the touch of eucalyptus and liveliness is reminiscent of the New World. It is a level of a beautiful classified grand cru.

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