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. A classic claret style wine with lovely intense lifted blackcurrant, blackberry, mocha cedarwood aromas with light sage/ herb garden notes. Inky deep, generous, and compact with fresh blackcurrant, blackberry, mulberry, red cherry fruits, plentiful fine-grained tannins, and underlying savoury oak. Finishes juicy firm with an attractive fine tannin plume. Has the substance, tannin quality and the balance to age for the long term. Seal; cork Drink Now- 2035 14.5% alc
95 points (July 2021)
Matured 12 months in 24% new French oak hogsheads. I love the bright yet deep and precise satsuma plum core to this release, the way it melds seamlessly with the white pepper that declares Coonawarra shiraz, and the violet lift that elevates the back palate in a wonderful glimmer of cool climate palate fragrance. Magnificent acid line and fine-ground chalk mineral tannins epitomise Coonawarra and declare a long future. I’ve been avidly following and cellaring Bin 128 for 25 vintages, and this is up there with my favourites.
95 points, Wine Companion (July 2021)
Bright, deep purple/red colour, which leaves residue in the glass when swirled. Spicy blackberry, aniseed aromas, lots of blackstrap licorice, the palate intense and focused, fine and driving, with bright flavour and elegance allied with discreet power. The palate has tension and drive, tautness and penetration. It gives the impression of just beginning to unfold its treasures. A superb shiraz.
95 points, The Real Review (June 2021)
Eucalypt on raspberry street. Indeed the fruit notes here tend into darker, black cherry and loganberry, almost into blackberry territory, with woody/anise notes contributing to the impression, along with trademark musk. This stood out in the line for its overt eucalyptus characters, something I don’t commonly associate with this label, though it also stood out for its full kirsch-like flourishes. It’s a very good Bin 128.
93 points, The Wine Front (July 2021)
Look closely – there’s more than you initially deduce here. Beyond the heft of ripe plummy fruit is a fine lacework of fennel and sage. What seems to be a simple, sweet entry becomes more interesting as savoury grip tightens through the mid-palate. There’s a spicy dry lick as tannins bite through the sunny red fruit, revealing pleasing, understated complexity.
93 points, David Sly, Decanter (June 2021)
Full bottle 1,400 g. Matured for 12 months in French oak hogsheads (24% new, 33% one year old, 43% two years old).
Deep blackish garnet. Rather sumptuously ripe nose. Mix of tar and elderberries. The firm freshness of Coonawarra is an agreeable foil to the ripeness and intensity of a Penfolds-style Shiraz. Quite a bit of acid and tannin on the end but this may be one of the better buys.
16.5 points, JancisRobinson.com (July 2021)
Glass-staining ruby. Smoke-tinged cherry, cassis and licorice aromas are complemented by hints of cured tobacco and cola. Gently sweet and focused, offering concentrated yet lively dark berry, cherry-vanilla, violet pastille and mocha flavors that are sharpened by a peppery nuance. A smoky note on a long, supple finish that's shaped by velvety tannins. Made in all French oak, 24% of it new.
93 points, Vinous (July 2021)
100% Coonawarra, 12 months in French hogsheads, 24% new, 33% one-year-old and 43% two-year-old. Magenta colour. The nose gives us a mix of blackfruits and ripe raspberries. Chocolate and mint. A midweight style. Slightly furry tannins. Really gets a bit exciting when we start to see some blueberries emerge towards the finish. Good acidity, decent length. Some spicy, nutty oak is on show at this early stage. An attractive style which should age well. With time in the glass, more and more generosity emerged, but the wine always retained a degree of elegance.
93 points, Wine Pilot
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.
