2011 St Henri Shiraz
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Tasting notes
Tasted at the Oriental Hotel, Bangkok, masterclass. From the tricky wet vintage. Blended from Barossa Valley, Eden Valley, Clare Valley, McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek, Robe and Bordertown, with a little Cabernet Sauvignon from Coonawarra and Barossa Valley and increasing components of Adelaide Hills fruit recently. Aged 18 months in large old, oak vats. Dark crimson and intense and concentrated on the nose with a powerful aroma reminiscent of decongestant. Rich, savoury nose that smells of a concentrated essence of northern Rhône. Unusually round and soft for a five-year-old top Penfolds Shiraz – presumably because of the vintage. Warming, flattering with a hint of something charred. A St Henri to drink rather than cellar? Unusually early-maturing. (JR)
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
All Shiraz. Some Adelaide Hills. Polished and a little taut but very correct. Cool and just a little severe. Finishes a bit severe. But it has great integrity. (JR)
Made with fruit sourced from McLaren Vale, Barossa and Adelaide Hills and aged 12 months in large, old oak barrels, the deep garnet-purple colored 2011 St. Henri Shiraz puts forward quite a peppery, meaty and earthy nose enveloping a good core of fresh cassis, mulberries and warm plums plus a touch of cinnamon. A little earthy, lean and woody in the mouth and framed by medium levels of chewy tannin, it is still tight though finishes long. This was a tough vintage compared to 2010 and it shows in this wine.
100% Shiraz. 12 months in 50+-year-old large oak vats. They have examples of late 19th-century bottlings of this when Auldana made it. Mostly from a vineyard a stone's throw from Magill, although grapes from McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Adelaide Hills. TA 6.6 g/l, pH 3.65 . Dark purple. Very rich, generous nose. Balsamic and treacle. Lovely satin texture and the sort of wine you yearn to serve alongside a Guigal single-vineyard Côte Rôtie. Lovely stuff. More approachable than some of the more obviously oaky bottlings. Very fresh. Long. (JR)
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.