Penfolds Bin 60A Cabernet Shiraz 2004 Screwcap
PENFOLDS BIN 60A CABERNET SHIRAZ 2004: The wine
"Penfolds also has a 2004 Bin 60A, certainly one of the most impressive young Australian red wines I have tasted. the '04 Bin 60A will be a great wine cast in the '62's image and no doubt create a mad scramble when released." Huon Hooke "
The great 1962 Bin 60A Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon Kalimna Shiraz played a defining role in establishing Australia's credentials as a fine wine producer. It brought attention to the benefits of cross-regional blending and in part, established the quintessential Australian wine blend of cabernet and shiraz.
In a world where egos readily clashed, the 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A Kalimna Shiraz, Coonawarra Cabernet unified wine critics and show judges. It is Penfolds most successful show wine winning 19 trophies and 33 gold medals.
Max Schubert understood the variability and nuances of individual vineyards through the development of Grange and the experimental wines of the 1950s and early 1960s. He noticed that selection from various vineyard sites across South Australia could improve his palette of blending options.
A confluence of oenological, physical and philosophical achievement, 1962 Penfolds Bin 60A was a cross-regional blend which exemplified the emerging Penfolds house style and highlighted the extraordinary synthesis of aromas and flavours derived from blending cabernet and shiraz.
Winewriter James Halliday - doyen of Australian wine show judges - described Penfolds 1962 Bin 60A as "a glorious absolutely wonderful wine; a finely woven tapestry of innumerable flavours."
Kalimna Shiraz hallmarks are the seductive plum, dark chocolate aromas, fruit intensity, flavour richness, immense structure and ageing potential. In seeking his ethereal wine, Max Schubert identified that such warm climate characteristics could complement the perfumed cassis/violet aromas, elegant flavours and fine grained tannins of cool-climate Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon.
Exquisite parcels of Block 20 Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon, Koonunga Hill and Kalimna Vineyard Barossa shiraz were identified and separately vinified at Magill and Nuriootpa in open and closed headed down fermenters. Towards dryness, the wine was racked into 100% new oak where the wine completed fermentation. After malolactic fermentation, individual components were classified and then selected for inclusion into the 2004 Penfolds Bin 60A blend.
Deep in colour, this youthful elemental wine shows a miraculous overlapping of aromas and flavours. The regional characters of both Coonawarra and the Barossa Valley are finely poised. The highly perfumed chamomile/violet/mocha aromas, immense concentration, savoury flavours and classically structured palate are in superb balance. This beautifully defined cross-regional/varietal with its meaty nuances and fine-grained tannins will continue to evolve in the cellar for decades.
2004 Penfolds Bin 60A Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon Barossa Shiraz
"For reasons of extreme youth I never got to taste the original 1962 Bin 60A at such an early stage in its life, but I have had the opportunity of tasting mature bottles of this wine on several occasions. A bottle that I tasted in 1997 I'd rate as one of the best reds I've ever put in my mouth. Given the provenance of the fruit and the winery, I have no doubt that the '04 will be capable of ageing well in bottle for 30 years or more, especially as it has been sealed entirely under screwcap." Tim White the Australian Financial Review, June 24 - 26 2005
"...I have tasted the 2004 and it is - even at such a young age - already exquisitely balanced, with a luscious concentration of black fruits but also a disarming elegance."
Max Allen Australian Magazine, Saturday 28 May 2005
"Dense, dark, heavy and loaded with fruit power. Exceptional depth and delivery, yet delicate in the way it delivers it to the tongue - a perfumed steamroller of a wine. Great length. But very young. Lovely lake of tannin…. 94 points" Campbell Mattinson
Winefront Monthly, May 2005
"This is the long distance runner with no shortage of obvious tannins at the moment, made from vines up to 60 years old in both Coonawarra and the Barossa Valley. Very dark, glossy purple. It's still very dry and chewy with massive palate impact (13.5 per cent alcohol). Very sinewy and muscular. Shades of dry port, but one that definitely does aerobics. A kick boxer of a wine." Jancis Robinson www.jancisrobinson.com, Monday 18 May 2005
"The Bin 60A is already taking on the colours and texture of a sumptuous tapestry: to try and describe the myriad individual parts is to miss the point. Perfectly structured and balanced, this is a very great wine." James Halliday Weekend Australian, Saturday 14 May 2005
"Bin 60A is a combination of silky texture, powerful concentrated fruit and rare power delivered with finesse and balance..." Ray Jordan West Australian, Thursday 21 April 2005
"Penfolds also has a 2004 Bin 60A, certainly one of the most impressive young Australian red wines I have tasted."
"Assuming it goes into the bottle without losing anything (and I am willing to bet on that) the '04 Bin 60A will be a great wine cast in the '62's image and no doubt create a mad scramble when released." Huon Hooke Good Living, Sydney Morning Herald, 19 April, 2005
"This wine is bloody close to the mark. The original Bin 60A looked very similar at this stage." John Bird Former Penfolds senior winemaker and consultant, 1958 to present day
"Perhaps the most perfectly structured dry red wine I’ve ever tasted from the barrel. This will knock the wine world to its knees." Philip White Wine Journalist, Adelaide Advertiser
