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Tasting notes
Bottles sourced from within the UK. Bottle 1 : Looks older than the 2004 but it’s still vibrant in terms of fruit, even if still a bit chewy. Bottle 2 : Just a little fresher than the first pour but basically the same strong liquorice notes. A tad severe. (Nick Ryan arguing it should be elevated to top division of Grange.) (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
A rather appetising note of austerity (surely Cabernet?) on the nose. Very impressive but very youthful. Not sweet but lovely balance and light dustiness. Great energy. But perhaps an atypical Grange? More austere than usual. (JR)
Deep mulberry colour. Intense and tightly wound. Nowhere near ready but there is lots tucked in here. (JR)
Made from fruit coming predominantly from the Barossa Valley this year (97%) and containing 2% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2006 Grange has been added to my list of favorite recent vintages. Deep garnet-purple colored, it’s still a little youthfully mute, offering notes of warm cherries, black currants, anise, coffee and toast with underlying hints of soy, yeast extract, black olives and Indian spices. Tight-knit and solidly structured on the medium to full-bodied palate, the concentrated fruit is densely coiled around the firm grainy tannins and very crisp acidity at this stage, but promises something very special in the years to come. It finishes very long, complex and layered with the cedar poking through the fruit purity. Patience is required for this vintage; it should begin opening out around 2016 and drink to 2030+. Importer: Treasury Wine Estates, Napa, CA; tel. (707) 259-4500
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.