Bottles labelled Bin numbers 71, 72 and 95. "A great Grange, and certainly the best bottle I have had out of four different tastings, this large-scaled Grange showed a huge nose of cigar box, licorice, coffee, mocha, caramel, plum, and currant, and in the mouth, fabulous concentration, plenty of glycerin, wonderful freshness, and superb delineation for a wine that is 35 years of age. A very long finish of close to 40 seconds is also impressive. Pristine bottles should continue to drink well for at least another decade" -eRobertParker.com By the early sixties, Penfolds Grange had secured its future. The experimental work carried out by Max Schubert left lasting impressions. Penfolds work in research and development, working hand in hand with new ideas within the constraints of the knowledge of the time, resulted in an emerging Penfolds house style. This is the first Grange to use grapes from the cool-climate Coonawarra district. The wine won two Gold and three Silver medals in Australian wine shows between 1963 and 1968. Bottles labelled Bin numbers 95 and 395 Grange combines the intensity of superior Shiraz fruit, with the complementary nuances of new fine-grained American oak. The 1965 Grange, plainly labelled as Penfolds Claret won the coveted Jimmy Watson Trophy, awarded to the best one-year-old red, the 1967 Grange won the same trophy two years later. This vintage also won two more Gold and six other medals between 1966 and 1973. Bottles from the 1965 vintage were labelled Bin numbers 69, 70, 71 and 95. A very autumnal style of Grange, with notes of mushrooms, and cedar The 1964 Grange claimed a Trophy, four Gold and three other medals in 1968 and 1969. Individual bottles are labelled Bin numbers 95, 395, 66, 67 and 68. "This is a light, elegant style. It almost comes across as a medium-bodied claret style of Grange, with notes of cedar, cassis, licorice, and plum. The wine is medium-bodied with modest alcohol (about 12.8%) and a dark garnet color with plenty of amber at the edge. The wine is balanced, restrained, and believe it or not, quite elegant. Drink it over the next 6-7 years" -eRobertParker.com Wine Spectator Red of the Year. History will record 1990 as one of the great Australian vintages of a generation. Grange 1990 was one of the very best to date, with the potential to rival the classic vintages of 1955, 1962 and 1971. A superbly balanced wine, and a very great Grange vintage with tremendous finesse and understated power. "Sweet oak shows prominently – but this is a big wine, and can cope, with its oak only serving as a temperance to all that sweet, saturated fruit. It’s a model of a pristine, powerful, youthful wine!" -Winefront.com.au Don Ditter, who succeeded Max Schubert as Chief Winemaker observed that, "The 1957 and 58 vintages reflect a time when we were unable to purchase and mature the wine in new American oak. In the end, we employed and completed fermentation and maturation in used oak hogsheads. We never quite picked up the same characters. All the same, these are interesting wines and after almost fifty years they are still holding together." Bottles from the 1958 vintage were eventually released as Bin numbers 46, 47 and 49 |
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