Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.1

Bit of a throwback style here with lots of big #cabernetsauvignon#shiraz fruit aromas. Quit elegant on the palate but new oak is noticeable towards the end of the sip, though tannins are velvety. Could use at least half a decade more to integrate - this wine is built for the long haul. — 17 days ago

Bob McDonald

9.4

A dense Ruby in colour. Black currant, dark plum, mocha, dark chocolate, and cigar box. The Penfolds Cabernet DNA if you like. Dense and powerful. This wine at 20 years of age is just a pup. The “Rewards of Patience “ has a window to 2045+. I’ll probably have the next one in 10 years or so. The release price of the latest vintage is now over $600 - too expensive IMO. Apparently substantial material from the old Block 42 in the blend - planted in the 1880’s. — a month ago

Andrew McIntyre

9.6

I love Penfolds Grange...one of my all time favourite wines. The depth and concentration of flavour of this 33 year old wine is outstanding...i think these will just go forever. Massive wine and a reminder of how excellent Syrah is! — 5 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

Deep Ruby in colour. Strong earthy stony aromas with deep ripe plum plus red and black fruits. An example of a Hunter Valley wine trying to be like a South Australian Shiraz - too ripe and full bodied. “Clumsy” HH said when it was first released. Thankfully wine makers lately in the Hunter have returned to the old medium weight, savoury, “sweaty saddle “ style. Returning to this 2005, this is more full bodied and rich but the quality of the very old vines planted by Maurice O’Shea pulls it over the line as a high quality wine. The more recent vintages of Maurice O’Shea are of extreme quality (2014 - 99 points), back to what the Hunter does best, and will live for decades. — 11 days ago

Bob McDonald

9.8

A gorgeous nose. I can see why Stephen and Pru matched this with the 2019. Elegant even though from a hot year - shows the brilliance of those 160 year old deep rooted vines. More mature earthy notes than the 2019 showing leathery aromatics. Like the 2019, elegant yet intense with silky and velvety tannins. A brilliant wine. A privilege to taste this. — 4 months ago

Vanessa

9.4

We finally had the chance to clink glasses 🥂 to celebrate our D6 results and completion of WSET Diploma!  🥳

We decided to pop this bottle of 2009 Penfolds “Grange” that we’ve been holding onto for some time… ⏰

It’s a 98% Shiraz and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon blend 🍇 made with grapes hailing from vineyards of Barossa Valley (primarily), McLaren Vale, Clare Valley and Magill Estate, all situated in South Australia. 🇦🇺

It had a medium garnet hue 👁️ with medium (+) intensity of layered aromas 👃🏻 and flavors 👄 including plush and concentrated notes of red and black cherry, cassis, boysenberry, dried fig, blueberry, violet, cocoa nibs, mocha, cedar, dill, vanilla, nutmeg, anise seed, clove, licorice, mint, forest floor, tobacco, leather, peppercorn, and meat. 👀

On the palate, it was dry with medium acidity, a lusciously full body, medium (+) velvety tannins, high alcohol (14.5% ABV) and a long finish. 🙌🏻

It was a spectacular wine, ripe for the occasion.  Cheers! — 5 months ago

with Deked1

Bob McDonald

9.7

At my 2015 Chardonnay Challenge of 6 wines. Very close consensus scores put this wine at 4th. 2015 was a warm year but this carried enough acid to easily last 10 years. Peaches and Nectarines. — 23 days ago

Bob McDonald

9.3

A little cold to begin with. After it warmed up - Liquorice, Plum and Blackberry. Such a strong wine - full bodied - plenty of everything. Drinking window up to 2035 according to Penfolds. At the moment this tastes young at 14 years of age. The next one is many years away. — 2 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.1

Generally one of the best Cabernets in Margaret River and therefore Australia. Very dark Ruby in colour. Cassis and blackberry, ripe and rich. I would never pick this as Margaret River in a blind tasting. Where are the herbal notes? But still recognisable as a quality Cabernet. The 2009 Moss Wood was given a poor score of only 84 points by Huon Hooke who is one of Australia’s leading wine scribes. He said “over ripe fruit is the problem “. I have always rated Huon’s reviews and have been a long time subscriber to his website and always will be but I don’t believe he got this right. On 4th July 2012 he said “I can’t see this ageing well” and gave a drinking window of 2012 to 2018. Well tonight at 15 years of age it is drinking very well. James Halliday gave the wine 95 points. — 5 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.1

Very dark in colour - almost black. Lots of everything - ripeness, oak, blackberry, dark chocolate. The sort of wine I would have loved in my 20’s, not so much in my 70’s. Not for lovers of delicate wine - this is full throttle. This Australian producer is probably better known in the USA than Australia - like Mollydooker. A full bodied palate with M plus intensity and grainy tannins. Ranked No. 3 in Wine Spectators Top 100 wines of 2012. Not sure that extended cellaring will make a huge difference but will try to have the last one in early 2027. — 6 months ago