2013 Penfolds Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz Bin 389
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Tasting notes
Coal. Ink dust. The nose is all minerals but lots of chocolate and coconut on the palate. Quite showy, even a little flashy, flexing its muscles – not as elegant as the 2012. Some heat on the end (which few of these Bin 389s have shown so far). (TC)
Critic scores
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
51% Cabernet, 49% Shiraz, sourced from Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Padthaway, Wrattonbully and Coonawarra. Much darker than most reds. Beautifully integrated on the nose. What a lot of corporate effort must go into styling these wines! Sweet start and then super-flattering. Not totally unlike a mug of cocoa. Then a little hot on the end where I'm aware of both acid and tannin. But the nose and front palate seem to have evolved quite early. (JR)
Bright purple. Complex, smoke-tinged bouquet of ripe dark berries, pipe tobacco, violet and vanilla, with a smoky note building in the glass. Sweet and seamless but at the same time focused, offering intense cassis and bitter cherry flavors that open up and become sweeter on the back half. Taut and youthful in character, finishing sappy, focused and long, with sneaky tannins adding shape and closing grip.
Bin 389 is often referred to as ‘Baby Grange’, in part because components of the wine are matured in the same barrels that held the previous vintage of Grange. First made in 1960, by the legendary Max Schubert. 51% Cabernet, 49% Shiraz from Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Padthaway, Wrattonbully and Coonawarra. 12 months in American hogsheads (28% new, 60% one year old and 12% two year old). TA 6.4 g/l, pH 3.62. Very dark crimson – some purple. High toned and richly perfumed. Very gently composed. Well integrated. Very rich and glorious. Gorgeous and promising. (JR)
About the producer
Penfolds is Australia’s most famous wine producer, known best for their iconic top wine, Grange. First produced commercially in 1952, Grange has since gone on to become one of the world’s most famous fine wines. In 2001, the wine was listed as an Australian heritage icon.