Created in 1962, Penfolds Bin 128 is a regional wine that reflects the unique climate and growing conditions of South Australia’s Coonawarra district and the relatively elegant style of cool-climate Shiraz. From the 1980 vintage, French oak replaced American, highlighting the pepper, spice and floral characteristics that define this style. Since this time, greater attention to fruit flavour ripeness has structurally resulted in a more complete and complex wine style.
Medium deep crimson. Redcurrant, blackberry, mocha aromas with chinotto notes. Inky textured wine with redcurrant, red cherry fruits, a touch of choco-mint and fine looseknit slightly grippy tannins. Finishes grainy firm with attractive mineral length. Very much in the Coonawarra Claret Style.
92 points (2020)
"A highly savoury, mid-weighted red. A strong beam of minty red currant to clove aromas defining the fore, with a skein of white pepper grind acidity leading up the aft. Long, fresh and wholly appetising. A versatile wine at the table, with some tannic mettle at the finish proclaiming its ageability."
92 points (July 2020)
"A highly savoury, mid-weighted red. A strong beam of minty red currant to clove aromas defining the fore, with a skein of white pepper grind acidity leading up the aft. Long, fresh and wholly appetising. A versatile wine at the table, with some tannic mettle at the finish proclaiming its ageability."
92 points (July 2020)
Bin 128 is right on form in 2018. The depth and presence of Penfolds meets the tangy dark berry profile and black pepper nuances of Coonawarra in this warm and dry vintage. Purity and crunch are underlined by the firm, fine tannin profile of well-integrated French oak. It doesn’t possess the inherent line or length of the great Penfolds reds, but this is nonetheless a release that will continue to deliver confidently for at least 15 years.
93 points (July 2020)
Deep, bright purple/red colour, with a very ripe, fragrant, blueberry and cherry-like aroma, essency and delicious. The wine is soft and rich, gently chocolaty and plush, with a sumptuous rich, fruit-sweet middle-palate surrounded by soft, fluffy tannins, the whole entity moving smoothly through to a very long-lasting finish. A totally exotic, hedonistic shiraz.
94 points, The Real Review (July 2020)
Quite a classic Coonawarra with cooler red-fruit tones, as well as a distinctive, eucalyptus thread to the sappy yet ripe red plums. The palate has a very sleek, intense and concentrated core of red-plum and blackcurrant flavors with very finely groomed tannins. So complete and effortlessly powerful, in an elegant frame. Will age very well.
94 points, JamesSuckling.com (July 2020)
One of the few Penfolds reds matured exclusively in French oak, the 2018 Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz shows a fair bit of vanilla and cedar on the nose, complemented by blueberries, raspberries and peppery spice. Medium to full-bodied, it's not as big or rich as the other Shiraz in the portfolio, but it's attractive for its smooth, silky feel and intricate spice shadings. It should drink well for at least a decade.
91 points, Wine Advocate (July 2020)
Probably the wine in the entire collection that is so dependent on a good vintage. Well 2018 delivered, so the wine is mighty good. It's bright and brilliant in the glass. Then the pepper red fruit aromas emerge from the glass. A little dried herb adds a further dimension. On the palate it has quite rich full fruit with firm but fine sinewy tannins. This would be great in the cellar after about 10 years, but it has more in it than that.
95 points, The West Australian (July 2020)
Generous in body and aroma, this presents a heavily laden berry patch with abundant ripe fruits and a heady waft of violets, iodine and sage. While this big-berry presence fills the front palate, there is a regiment of stern black tannins that pull the structure abruptly back into line. With its ungainly top and tail currently teetering on a high wire, this needs time in the bottle to find its balance.
91 points, David Sly, Decanter (July 2020)
This is the finest value of the six double-digit dollar wines. It is also the finest Bin 128 I have seen in a long while. It is hard to understate just how rewarding and delicious this wine is. A thrilling, spicy, hedgerow fruit nose is followed by lip-smacking fruit and a spicy finish with traction and grip which only seriously posh wines bring to the fore. This is a Shiraz which could sit on a dining room table next to Cuilleron, Clape and Allemande and get lost in the crowd as opposed to trying to suffocate its companions. It is the essence of Coonawarra Shiraz while at the same time revelling in its Penfolds tailoring. The tobacco, herb and leaf aromatics puncture the blackberry chassis and the directness of juiciness of the Shiraz berries is evident in every sip. The brittle tannins, born of the cool climate, bring a sourness which offset the generosity of the fruit perfectly. Expressive and with great finesse and directness this is a true winner in the portfolio. Buy all you can.
18.5+ points (July 2020)
Taut, dry, well balanced and well fruited. Straight into licorice territory, red and black, with peppercorn, red cherry and an assortment of woodsy spices. Oak is more apparent in the texture than it is in the flavour and while there’s a touch of warmth to the finish you’d have to say that it remains well controlled. It’s a hard wine to get excited over but it’s been perfectly crafted.
91+ points, The Wine Front (July 2020)
Muddy dark crimson with a pale rim. Strong cassis and balsam notes on the nose. And then rather notable (added?) acidity on the palate. Good pure fruit but that acidity seems just a bit too much at present, and not exactly luscious on the finish. Pure Coonawarra character though.
16+ points, JancisRobinson.com (June 2020)
Coonawarra
The first vines were planted in Coonawarra by John Riddoch in 1890, however it was not until the renewed interest in table wine production in the 1950's that Coonawarra was brought into the limelight. Located almost 380 km southeast of Adelaide, Coonawarra is today one of the most famous red wine regions in Australia. Its weathered limestone terra rossa soils, avaibility of water and relatively cool maritime climate make it a unique viticultural region. Extremely flat and unprotected, Coonawarra is exposed both to the swinging influences of the cool Great Southern Ocean and hot, dry northerly winds. Spring frosts also pose a major threat with the potential to wipe out entire crops. Mechanical harvesting is widely employed in the region although smaller producers prefer to tend their vines by hand. Coonawarra is best known for classically-styled Cabernet Sauvignon, although in good years, Shiraz from the region is also very compelling.Penfolds
Penfolds is probably the most extraordinary of the world’s wine brands with an enviable reputation for quality at every price level. The original Penfold was an English doctor who, in 1844, planted grapes at Magill, now a suburb of Adelaide. However, it was not until the late 1940s that Penfolds began to forge a reputation for red wine.
The Penfolds house style emerged from a fortified wine producing culture and evolved as a winemaking philosophy which has had a profound effect on the entire Australian wine industry. Many of the techniques initially adopted to make Penfolds Grange would become part of the wider Penfolds winemaking culture. The number of techniques employed in the research and development of Penfolds wines is astonishing. Max Schubert and his team pioneered: major advances in yeast technology and paper chromatography; the understanding and use of pH in controlling bacterial spoilage; the use of headed down/submerged cap fermentation and the technique of rack and return; cold fermentation practices; the use of American oak as a maturation vessel and perhaps most critically, partial barrel fermentation. Nowadays, the use of American oak and barrel fermentation for instance is considered traditional Barossa winemaking practice!
Today, Penfolds house style embraces the concept of multi-regional blending, optimum fruit quality, the use of fine-grained American or French oak, barrel fermentation and maturation. Overall, the Penfolds style is about highly-defined fruit aromas, fruit sweetness, ripe tannins, richness, power and concentration. The number of iconic wines that have emerged from the Penfolds stable over the years is remarkable. Bin 389 a Cabernet Shiraz blend released in 1960 is now considered the quintessential Australian wine blend. Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz and Bin 28 Kalimna Shiraz released in 1962 pre-empted the contemporary enthusiasm for regional definition by about 25 years. Improved vineyard management, site selection and winemaking brought about subsequent releases of Bin 707 and Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon. The Penfolds Wine Making Philosophy is the accumulation of more than half-a-century of knowledge and winemaking practice initiated by Max Schubert and subsequently refined by Don Ditter, John Duval and Peter Gago. Their collective commitment to multi-regional and vineyard blending contributed to a consistency of style and quality that has cemented Penfolds reputation as the foremost producer of premium age-worthy red wines in Australia.
