Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This has a duality between some cooler-climate sourcing (some downgraded Bin 707 material went here) and warmer-region fruit from McLaren Vale and the Barossa, delivering impressive flesh and fruit weight. Really builds and fills and holds a wide-open finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a strong vintage of Bin 407, a multiregional South Australian Cab. It opens with aromas of chocolate, cola, plush plum and black cherry, backed by accents of mint and other crushed herbs. On the palate, fine, chalky tannins slink around silky fruit and savory herbs. Poised and harmonious, this has the potential to age until 2030, but is drinking well right now
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Wine & Spirits
Supple currant ripeness centers this latest vintage of Bin 407, the less-ambitious sibling of 707. It’s dark and formally structured, the substantial oak notes completely saturated by velvety plum-skin richness. The clean fruit lasts, with cabernet’s herbal identity present, the wine ringing clear as a bell. This should mature well over the next decade.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Another beautiful effort in the lineup this year is the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 407, which is a multi-region cuvée brought up in both French and American oak hogsheads. Classic notes of blackcurrants and cassis interwoven with hints of dill, tobacco, and graphite all flow to a full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon that’s fabulously balanced, with good acidity as well as ripe tannins. Give bottles another year or two and it should cruise for a decade or more.
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Wine Spectator
Shows appealing density and a savory thread, featuring rosemary, sage and loam details that mingle with firm currant and dried cherry flavors. Herbal shadings gain traction on the finish along with the dense tannins, adding an appealing fresh green note. Drink now through 2033.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
There's no Bin 707 from the 2017 vintage, so that fruit has been put into the 2017 Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon. It's a lifted, perfumed style of Cabernet aged in both French and American hogsheads, with leafy, minty accents and Ribena-like cassis notes. Medium to full-bodied, it has a velvety texture and a soft, approachable finish, tinged with vanilla and dried spices. A blend of fruit from Padthaway, McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Coonawarra and Wrattonbully.
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.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
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.