PenfoldsGrange 2018

A robust Grange from a lauded vintage, this wields sheer power with such compelling prowess. Uncompromising Grange. There are rich blackberries and plums on offer, together with brazen oak and abundant notes of blackcurrants, black cherries, charcoal, cola and hard brown spices. So fleshy and intense. Dark-chocolate and cocoa-powder aromas and flavors here, too. The tannins are polished and long, extruding deep into the finish and holding endlessly. Dark chocolate, black cherry, dark plum and more. Impressive. Brazen. One of the great Granges that will drink magnificently for decades to come.

Deep colour. Beautiful and classic, with intense blackberry, blackcurrant dark chocolate espresso aromas and wax polish, roasted chestnut, malt notes. Superbly concentrated wine with deep-set inky blackberry, blackcurrant, dark plum, dark chocolate mocha flavours, fine chocolaty/ velvety tannins, underlying espresso, malt, oak notes and hints of aniseed. Finishes chocolaty firm with superbly integrated acidity and mineral length. A glorious year for Grange. This will last 50 years at least. Wonderful. One of the greatest vintages of all time, highlighting a superb growing season, marvellous vineyard management, the fidelity of the Penfolds house style, and generations of imagination and effort. 97% Shiraz, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Clare Valley. 18 months maturation in 100% new American oak hogsheads.

A much-awaited vintage that fulfils expectations and then some. It has all the elements that you come to expect but still you have to sit back and marvel that so much can be going on inside one wine. Firstly, it simply ain’t Grange unless it is wearing its traditional American oak coat, and this iteration isn’t going to shy away from that. But perhaps it is the generosity across the board of South Australia’s 2018 vintage that gathers in 18 months of barrel maturation, puts shape to its broad-shouldered dark fruits, turns oak notes into chocolate and sarsaparilla characters on one side of the brain and beef and mushroom braise in the other. All in all, it is a fabulous balance of inputs: big fruit, classically prominent oak, all its structural tannins and acidity fitting cleverly into one exceptionally complex and engaging being. Palate length is indefinite, perhaps suggesting similar cellaring potential well into the second half of the 21st century. Magnificent.

This wine comes with high expectations—as does the vintage. The 2018 vintage across South Australia (and cheekily, we could probably extend the accolade to all of Australia) was excellent. It was warm, but without incident, and responsible for powerfully ripe, serious wines. Many producers made some of their best wines in this vintage. So here, to the 2018 Grange: there is spiced raspberry, lashings of salted licorice, red curry paste, layers of forest berries, rendered lamb fat and crushed pink peppercorns to start. In the mouth, the tannins close around the fruit with the same polish and seamlessness as the 2008, possibly the 2004? Very different vintages, but there is a textural similarity for me. This is polished and glossy and so very pretty. It contains 3% Cabernet Sauvignon this year, and 69% Barossa, 18% McLaren Vale and the balance from Clare Valley. Each of the regions brings with it its own characteristics. Barossa brings the red dirt, blood, deli meat and rust. McLaren Vale brings the plush purple fruits with a side of meat and licorice. Clare brings the polish, the opulence and the velvet texture. With their powers combined, this is an extraordinary Grange. One of the true greats, which will only get better as it ages.