An engaging and commendable wine for the season. True to this cool vintage, there is a prettiness and an elegance to this Magill, with lively acid presence and a savoury edge, accented with dark chocolate, liquorice, black olives, exotic spice and pepper over a core of elegant, tangy berry fruits. It soaks up 100% new […]
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If St Henri is the Penfolds red to buy this year, Bin A is the white. 2012 has produced a beautiful and characterful chardonnay of effortless energy, uniting grand complexity with crystalline finesse. Penfold’s Senior White Winemaker Kim Schroeter rates it alongside 2009 as one of the best, and I’m a believer. Bin A’s signature […]
readShowcasing a cool vintage in Tasmania, this is a Yattarna of tightly coiled, high-strung, focused acidity, driving a long and linear palate with great persistence and energy. A bouquet of great focus of grapefruit, white peach and lemon zest is set against a backdrop of charcuterie and gunflint. There’s a savoury air to this release, […]
readThe 15 day heatwave of March 2008 will be remembered longer than the 10 day heatwave of February 2009, but their influence was profoundly different. 2008 Grange infamously escaped before the heat, but not so 2009. The result is a lavish and seductive Grange that juxtaposes generous fruit and sweet American oak with confident tannin […]
readWithout the focus or integrity of the great vintages, this is nonetheless a sound result considering the season. Surprisingly deep, vibrant purple in hue, it’s an elegant and tangy release of gamey, peppery, savoury, spicy, charcuterie character, underlined by dark chocolate and led by firm, finely structured tannins and vibrant, sour acidity that lends an […]
readPenfolds’ first experimental Bin 170 was born in 1973 from Block 3C of its 19th century Kalimna Vineyard, almost blended with Bin 169 Cabernet, were it not for a last minute directive to keep it separate. In 2010, the same 3C component that would normally contribute to Grange was identified as something very special aromatically […]
readA treasure has emerged from the depths of Penfold’s cellars, a solera commencing in 1915, the foundation of the very first Grandfather cask, encompassing the 1940 and 1945 Grandfathers as well as components of the very first Great Grandfather release in 1994. In all, a minimum average age of more than half a century, older […]
readWe’ve all been there, staring blankly at a wine list in a far-flung place that we can neither pronounce nor understand. What to order? Fear not, there are some simple principles to ensure you won’t be left sipping a dud. Nothing beats the thrill of exploring local cuisine in an obscure hamlet, and some of […]
readTyson Stelzer presents the sparkling wines for winter celebrations. A midsummer afternoon on the hillside of the grand cru vineyard amphitheatre of Oger in the heart of Champagne’s Côte des Blancs in northern France. The sky growled as dark storm clouds assembled above the treetops. I dashed to my car, clutching my camera, the howling […]
readIs there such a thing as a bloke’s wine and a ladies’ wine, asks Tyson Stelzer. I recently did something I never expected to do. I bought myself a women’s deodorant. Before you jump to conclusions, let me explain. My favourite men’s deodorant was discontinued and I was quickly becoming disenchanted auditioning replacements in the […]
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