We’re stepping straight back into 2003 with this Barossan red. Dark, heavy, and shaped by toasty oak, it tastes like an old Penfolds Shiraz – all plum fruit, oak tannins, and then tart acidity. It’s not a bad wine, and plenty will love the impact. But really, terroir, varietal character and vitality is MIA and makes this more dated than it should be.
Best drinking: it will look much better in five years time and mature for decades if you’re patient. 16/20, 87/100. 14.5%, $50. Would I buy it? No.
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Comment
Sounds like this, and their2015 Wilberforce Cabernet Shiraz which you also reviewed (link), are meant for your younger collectors to stow away. Your reference to Penfold’s style in both reviews, and that they will last a long time, suggests to me that it might be a poor persons option to cellar instead of the Grange and Bin 389. Coincidentally I just happened to read a couple of Jancis Robinson articles on Henschke and Penfold’s.