Bin 111A Clare Valley Barossa Valley Shiraz 2016

Limited Editions

Penfolds Bin 111A Clare Valley Barossa Valley Shiraz 2016

The 2016 vintage provided an ideal opportunity to create a bona fide Penfolds Special Bin, rare and true to the Penfolds ‘House Style’. Two special Shiraz single-vineyard parcels were blended to create something beguilingly beautiful and different. The impact of the much-touted 2016 South Australian vintage on two vineyards from time-proven Grange growers has produced a Penfolds Shiraz of superb structure, balance and varietal definition.

Both single-vineyard parcels reveal their own regional truths, highlighting the spoils of Clare Valley and Barossa Valley. This wine sensorial and structurally delivers more than the sum of its parts. Framed by French oak, the assemblage of Shiraz is altogether different.

Indeed, an authentic Penfolds Special Bin that will reward and evolve with careful cellaring.

When To Drink

Taste Description

Color
Bright deepened red, iris-purple on rim

Nose
A fusion of preserved figs, black plum, blackberry and black liquorice flirts with an aromatic elution of fish oil, anchovy, soy and sesame/nori.
Nascent scents of toasted charred meats (rotisserie rib of beef?), rendered fat/marrow ...
An uplifting freshness and higher notes are liberated with air – awakened scents akin to cola, Chinotto, aniseed, root beer.
Camouflaged (new!) oak has to be proactively sought out, verified.
Strikes a Grange stylistic bullseye, all boxes ticked.

Palate
A retronasal transfer of the aromatics listed above converge to similarly adorn the palate.
Full-bodied – turbo-propelled by a V.A./formic mix, affording attaque and grip, yet respectful of balance and style.
Custom-fitted with impressive density and length – all dark and black, harmonious.
Oak conceded – absorbed, compliant – effortlessly merging with blue and black fruits and dark chocolate/mocha notes.
Solid, malleable tannins, with an exacting acid coupling, serve to polish and elevate; no doubt soon to preserve.
Energetic, focussed. Much still to reveal ...

Winemaker Quotes

Technical Information

Vintage Conditions

Autumn and winter were dry and cool across South Australia. Below long-term average rainfall continued throughout spring and summer, resulting in a slightly delayed start to the growing season across the warmer districts. The early part of summer was warm, with plenty of sunshine, allowing shiraz vines to develop healthy canopies and good bunch set. Rainfall in late January and early February was a welcome relief across the state and greatly improved yield forecasts.

Optimal conditions in late summer and early autumn ensured the grapes were able to ripen evenly, develop desirable flavours and firm tannins.
The Barossa Valley and Clare Valley harvest was outstanding, for both yield and quality. McLaren Vale recorded only a handful of days above 40°C in December, with no heatwaves from veraison to harvest. Mild conditions were also welcomed at Magill Estate vineyard, where shiraz was able to ripen evenly across all three blocks. Grapes from the Magill Estate harvest were handpicked on the 11th and 12th of February.

The Story of Grange

The development of Max Schubert’s Grange is a modern tale of imagination, a battle against the odds and redemption.

It began with a side trip to Bordeaux in 1949, where a wine ‘capable of staying alive for a minimum of twenty years’, first entered Schubert’s mind. His first experimental vintage in 1951 began a new way of thinking that would eventually lead to a signature wine style, but not before Grange was discredited and Max Schubert forced to make the wine in secrecy.

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