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Tasting notes
Made up of 97% Shiraz & 3% Cabernet Sauvignon the 2020 Penfold’s is such an accomplished wine, the fruit is from the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, and Clare Valley, aged in 100% new American hogshead for 20 months. The nose is dominated by complex notes of black cherry, crushed black pepper and pencil shavings that emanate from the glass. The palate is polished with silky ripe tannins. This Iconic wine shows incredible purity of fruit and will need more time to reach its full potential.
Critic scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
Extremely dark, concentrated purplish crimson. Heady, rich, layered nose. Sweet start yet a dry, chewy finish. Very youthful. Wait! Almost painful to taste now. (JR)
Blackberry, blueberry, graphite and terra cotta aromas. Medium-bodied with clarity, focus and very fine tannins that are polished and caressing. One of the most refined and textural Granges I have had in a long time. The tannins are very resolved. This is mostly Barossa and McLaren Vale with some Claire Valley. 3% cabernet sauvignon. Very drinkable now, but will age beautifully.
The 2020 Grange comprises 97% Shiraz and the balance Cabernet Sauvignon from McLaren Vale (48%), Barossa Valley (40%) and Clare Valley (12%), and it matured for 20 months in American oak hogsheads, 100% new. While the metric of regions changes each season and the proportion of Shiraz changes slightly, the élevage and style remain the same. Aromatically, the wine is black and savory, with crushed ant, black peppercorn, blueberry, blackberry and licorice/aniseed. In the mouth, the wine feels lighter than some other vintages on release. There is something like clarity and perhaps a little hole in the mid-palate—it sits like clarity or less density and also features as breathing space. A nice wine, it is lighter than the preceding 2019. Both vintages had their challenges, but this 2020 season has yielded an "easier" feeling wine.
About the producer
Penfolds is Australia’s most famous wine producer, known best for their iconic top wine, Grange. First produced commercially in 1952, Grange has since gone on to become one of the world’s most famous fine wines. In 2001, the wine was listed as an Australian heritage icon.