Penfolds was founded in 1844 by Dr. Christopher Penfold, an English physician by trade, and his wife Mary. Penfolds is one of the oldest and most famous wineries in Australia, with the first vines planted by Dr. and Mrs. Penfold with cuttings they brought when they emigrated there. Over time Penfolds grew successfully and their early production of Claret and Riesling proved popular, though many of the day-to-day operations of the winery fell to Mary since Christopher’s medical practicing occupied much of his time. When Christopher unfortunately passed in 1870, full responsibility fell to Mary. Mary later retired in 1884 and her daughter Georgina took over the estate when Penfolds was producing 1/3 of South Australia’s wine. When Mary died in 1896, the Penfolds legacy was continuing to grow with the exploration of new winemaking techniques and they became the largest winery in Australia by 1907.
Though a lot has changed over the years at Penfolds, the experimental spirit of winemaking continues to live on to this day. All of their wines fit into categories of single vineyard or single block, single region or sub-region, and multi-region or multi-varietal blending in an effort to showcase each category’s character. This specific blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz fits into the multi-region or multi-varietal category. At the head of a team of roughly 10 winemakers crafting these wines, Peter Gago is chief winemaker today and the fourth in the history of Penfolds.
Tasting Notes: James Suckling 97-Pts: A blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon and 43% Shiraz, this has a very impressively complete feel, a hallmark of the 2018 vintage wines, and there’s a myriad of characters with cabernet’s cedary and gently herbal notes sitting atop a core of rich red-plum and dark-berry shiraz fruit aromas. So integrated. The palate has a very silky texture, so plush and polished with a wealth of rich and intense dark-plum, dark-berry and blackcurrant flavors. The oak is completely soaked with ripe, fresh fruit. This is a great Bin 389. Drink over the next two decades.