Winemaker Notes
The 2021 vintage is benchmark Bin 28 - full-bodied, rich and generous. Explore mocha, chocolate, espresso flavours, mid-palate richness and juicy acidity. Approachable now, but with the capacity to cellar for 30 years.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
A stunning and distinctive expression, with notes of black walnut liqueur, mocha, cardamom, juicy maraschino cherry and salted black licorice, plus a touch of plum paste. The tannins are fine-grained and polished, with a long, spicy finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This inky-hued Shiraz is dense, ripe and powerful with quite a bit of oak on display. Chocolate and dusting polish perch atop the concentrated dark fruit and pepper spice on the nose. The palate is rich and luscious, framed in muscular tannins that support, rather than overpower.
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Wine & Spirits
Fresh blueberry depths invest this wine’s tannins with black velvet riches. You can sense the integration of Penfolds’ winemaking, finishing the fermentation in oak. Rosemary and thyme. Luscious and delicious. Ripe and open. It’s not exciting, perhaps, just comforting and beautiful. From an epic vintage, this will last for years. And yet, even now, it’s supple and easy to love.
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Australian Wine Companion
A McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Padthaway, Wrattonbully and Clare Valley sourced shiraz matured in American oak (7% new) for 12 months. Deep crimson in the glass, the wine initially comes across a little shy, showing itself in the traditional Penfolds 'house style' after some time in the glass. Plentiful black and plummy fruit depth with hints of spice, roasting meats, soy sauce, charcuterie, Old Jamaica chocolate, licorice and earth. Tenses somewhat on the medium-length finish.
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James Suckling
The type of full-weighted Australian shiraz that many expect. While it could be argued that that the style is a bit fusty, what cannot be denied is the moreish feel. Iodine, clove and boysenberry billow toward a nourishing and forceful finish and the reality is that this cuvee, as with so many in the stable, is reliable and delicious. Sure, the oak is a bit fuzzy, but there is plenty to like.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 Bin 28 Shiraz hails from five regions: McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Padthaway, Wrattonbully and Clare Valley. The wine matured for 12 months in American oak (7% new), and this really amplifies the sweet fruit characters in the mouth. It's already nicely integrated aromatically, despite being poured and opened in the same instance (i.e., no preparation prior to tasting), and is redolent with red and purple berry fruit. Spicy, full throttle and loads of tannin in the mouth. Nicely chewy. The first vintage of this wine was in 1959.
Since 1844, Penfolds has been grounded in experimentation, curiosity and uncompromising quality. Their success has been driven by a lineage of visionary winemakers. It began with Dr. Christopher and Mary Penfold, the pioneers who dreamed big, inventing tonics, brandies, and fortified wines made from grapes and Australian sunshine. It continued with celebrated winemaking legends including Max Schubert, who pushed the development to extraordinary, bold new heights. It is this pioneering spirit and curiosity that still rings true after nearly two centuries, it is what has helped Penfolds become one of the most celebrated winemakers in the world today.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
South Australia is the historic heart of Australian wine, a great wine capital of the world, and home to some of the most famous regions. It produces more than 80% of Australia’s premium wine from some of the oldest vines in the world. There is an abundance of varieties and wide spectrum of styles to explore. From the rogue to refined, discover Australian wines that are far from ordinary.