Introduction
2001 marked the 50th Anniversary of Penfolds Grange, and as luck would have it, an invitation came to attend the Dinner to be held at Penfolds Magill Estate Restaurant in Magill, South Australia on November 26. Needless to say, invitations were as scarce as early bottles of Grange, and in spite of the dinner being held during the busiest time of our trading year, the trip to South Australia was a must! 150 people from all around Australia were invited; a handful from the trade, a bigger handful from the press, Penfold-Hyland family members, and a number of old folks who had worked with Max Schubert in the early years. The new Southcorp management team was in full command, with no sign of the old guard, except for Penfolds winemakers and Grange growers.
Keith Lambert (right)
Don Ditter (left) & John Duval (right)
Derek Jolly, seated right.
The dinner started with a Crayfish and Spinach Tart, which was accompanied by French Aquaculture Sturgeon Caviar. The wines served with this course included the 2001 Penfolds Eden Valley Reserve Riesling and the 1998 Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay. The next course was the Roast Fillet of Aged Beef, which was served with speck, wild mushrooms, caramelised eschalots and a truffle scented beef glaze. The wine included 1991 Penfolds Magill Estate Shiraz, 1991 Penfolds St Henri Shiraz and 1998 Penfolds RWT Barossa Valley Shiraz. A trio of Grange was served with a cheese platter, which consisted of 12 month old Maffra Cheddar (Australia), Reggiano AAA Parmigiano (Italy) and Roe de Vallee (France). The Granges were 1971, 1986 and 1996. All great years representing the best from each of the winemakers. The sweets served were Sable of Poached Yellow Peaches and Raspberries, with lime curd, vanilla cream and raspberry sauce. A nip of Great Grandfather Port was served with Coffee. And for those who wished to play on copious quantities of South Australia's finest beer - Coopers!
There is no doubt that Great wine is made in the vineyard, and the Penfolds winemaking team clearly recognise this fact. During the evening's ceremonies, much time was devoted to acknowledging the various Grange Growers, and special presentations were made to these great viticulturists. Penfolds are paying up to $10,000 per tonne for the top fruit which makes it into a Grange bottle. That number translates approximately to $12.50 a bottle for fruit content alone, which compares with about $2.50 a bottle for fruit in an ordinary bottle of wine. As usual, you get what you pay for.
Ray Beckwith
Ray Beckwith is the shadow behind Max Schubert and Grange. Ray is alive and well, and I met him for the first time at the dinner, although I had heard his name mentioned on several occasions by Derek Jolly, who also worked with Max Schubert. Ray's achievements have never been fully acknowledged by Penfolds, and it is a great pity that this gentle, very intelligent man should continue to live in Max Schubert's shadow. I have scoured the textbooks of the past and can only find casual reference to Ray's very important, early work. During the 1950's, much of the winemaking was a hit and miss affair, with tradition influencing the methods of winemaking and adjusted only in a minor way from vintage to vintage. Beckwith was the Chemist - the analytical brains behind Grange who understood the importance of pH and the need for chemical analysis. He is also credited with creating central laboratory procedures at Penfolds, thus establishing a set of standards for winemaking practice, which could be monitored by laboratory staff. This has become standard industry procedure. I spoke to Ray on the night, and he informed me that he had written an account of the events surrounding the development of Penfolds Grange. Currently the manuscript is with Southcorp - let's hope that it is publicised soon, so that the true historical perspective of Grange can be established.
The tasting notes that follow were made on the night in less than ideal tasting conditions. The pomp and ceremony of the occasion and low level lighting, together with the constant chatter on the table, all made a less than perfect tasting environment. I am sure, many of the wines would have scored a point or two higher and, thus the notes are to be read with this proviso in mind. I have to say by the time I got to the Great Grandfather Port, I was busy chatting with other guests and the subtleties of this superb drink were never recorded on the night. However, the deep onion brown colour and powerful rancio character are well remembered in between discussions of viticultural practice and winemaking techniques. Cheers
- Nick Chlebnikowski
2001 Penfolds Eden Valley Reserve RieslingRegion: Eden Valley, South Australia
Brilliant, pale straw colour, with green hue. Excellent nose, filled with floral aromas, followed by lime, citrus and pear. The palate is youthful, and the wine has the structure to age superbly. Flavours of lime and citrus are dominant, followed by pear back palate. Excellent length, crisp acid finish, with long citrus lime aftertaste. Cellar 4-5 years (2006-2007) Alc/Vol: 12.5% RATING: 92/100 VALUE: /5
1998 Penfolds Yattarna ChardonnayRegion: South Australia
Bright straw colour, with slight green hue. The nose is complex, with layers of aromas emerging - toasted oak, spice, peach, vanilla, butterscotch, roast almonds and yeast lees. Mouthfilling palate, wonderful depth and concentration of flavour. Yeast lees, biscuit, hazelnut, toasted oak, excellent length. Perfect balance. Crisp acid finish, followed by very long grapefruit and butterscotch aftertaste. Cellar 3-4 years (2005-2006) Alc/Vol: 13.5% RATING: 95/100 VALUE: /5
1991 Pefolds Magill Estate ShirazRegion: Magill, South Australia
Very deep crimson colour, showing bottle development. Subtle nose, with aroma of blackcurrant, liquorice and earth. Full bodied palate, with excellent length and concentration. Flavours of earth, spice, prune and plum. Fine grained soft tannins, followed by an earthy truffle aftertaste. Cellar 3-4 years (2005-2006) RATING: 88/100 VALUE: /5
1991 Penfolds St Henri ShirazRegion: South Australia
Opaque crimson colour. The nose is restrained, with aroma of earth, truffle and spice. The palate is quite developed, with the fruit fading, however, there is considerable tertiary flavours of earth and leather. Fine grained, dry lingering tannins, followed by aftertaste of earth and truffle. Cellar 3-4 years (2005-2006) RATING: 90/100 VALUE: /5
1998 Penfolds RWT ShirazRegion: Barossa Valley, South Australia
A spectacular wine, and a triumph for John Duval. Totally opaque, black crimson colour. Aroma of blackberry, spice, liquorice, vanilla and toasted oak - a wonderfully concentrated sniff. On the palate, monumental structure and flavour. Spice, liquorice, vanilla, oak and blackberry all meshed superbly and supported by fine grained, firmish tannins. Perfect balance, followed by exceptionally long aftertaste. Cellar 8-12 years (2010-2014) Alc/Vol: 14.5% RATING: 95/100 VALUE: /5
1971 Penfolds Grange HermitageRegion: South Australia
We recall when this wine was just released, controversy was created due to its high volatility. Many critics claimed that it was excessive and that it would never fade. Schubert's idea of using the acetic acid was to help lift the fruit, which it did. The critics were silenced when the wine won a double gold in the UK. Opaque, brick red colour. The nose displays aroma of earth, farmyard, leather, prune and confectionary. The wine is very well developed, yet is still capable of further cellaring. Concentrated, palate flavours of confectionary, earth and truffle. Velvet smooth tannins, followed by a very long earth, leather and liquorice aftertaste. Cellar 5-8 years (2007-2010) Alc/Vol: 12.5% RATING: 90/100 VALUE: /5
1986 Penfolds Grange HermitageRegion: South Australia
A baby, and one of the all time Great Granges. Opaque, brick red colour. Powerful nose, with aroma of prune, blackberry, spice and liquorice. Still very youthful with no signs of tertiary aroma at this stage. Mouthfilling palate, a concentrate of Shiraz. Outstanding depth, with flavours of blackberry, cedar and spice dominant. Perfect tannins, followed by very long aftertaste. Cellar 10-12 years (2012-2014) Alc/Vol: 13.7% RATING: 94/100 VALUE: /5
1996 Penfolds GrangeRegion: South Australia
A great contemporary Grange. Opaque crimson colour. Aroma of violets, spice, vanilla, confectionary, blackberry and plum. Mouthfilling palate - a total concentrate with flavours of blackberry, blackpepper, vanilla, oak and plum in great abundance. Very youthful. Fine grained, firmish tannins, yet perfectly balanced. Cellar 15-20 years (2017-2022) Alc/Vol: 14.0% RATING: 96/100 VALUE: /5
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