South Australia – The annual Collection release this month will have three country of origin portfolios for the first time in Penfold’s history: Australian, Californian, and the first French release, showing Penfolds’ enduring “House Style” on a global scale.
Penfolds ambition to make wine outside of Australia started decades ago and its ‘House Style’ embraces the freedom to explore premium viticultural regions across Australia and the world, with a global approach to winemaking – unrestricted by region or vineyard. A rich tradition of research, curiosity and wine trial continues to guide Penfolds winemaking endeavours in Australia, Champagne, Napa, Paso Robles California and now Bordeaux France
The result? Penfolds II Cabernet Shiraz Merlot 2019
The term “Penfolds II” refers to the collaboration of two winemakers to create premium wines using an elegant fusion of time-tested Australian and French winemaking methods.
The new French release is led by a wine made in partnership with one of Bordeaux’s most respected winemaking Houses, Dourthe Bordeaux. Combining the creativity, direction and vision of Penfolds Chief Winemaker Peter Gago and Dourthe Chief Winemaker Frédéric Bonnaffous, the two houses collaborated to craft a wine that spans Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
The two houses collaborated tocraft a wine that spans Northern and Southern Hemispheres, blending grapes from Bordeaux (71%) and SouthAustralia (29%).
“To push the boundaries and craft such a blend was an unexpected and utterly fascinating concept. Collaborating and cultivating firm friendships with the Penfolds winemaking team in blending such an exceptional wine was a dream come true. For us, this was ground-breaking, resulting in a totally original, innovative wine – Penfolds II – which far surpassed all our expectations, while remaining true to the culture and style of our respective countries and houses.” said Patrick Jestin, Dourthe CEO.
“This is the start of our French winemaking journey. Our main objective? To remain true to the winemaking ethos of both wineries, to deliver the best blend possible, to ideally make Bordeaux and South Australia proud. This wine is not about bigness or boldness or assertion. It is blended to convey an ethereal lightness, subtlety on the palate-sensitively binding two hemispheres, Old World and New.” said Peter Gago, Penfolds Chief Winemaker.
Next, introducing the 2019 Penfolds FWT 585: A trial Bin wine made of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot
Comprehensive trials and blends have marked the start of this new chapter for Penfolds in France since 2018, when numerous trials and blends were tasted throughout the classification process.
Emma Wood, a senior winemaker with Penfolds, worked on the ground, in the cellars, and in the vineyards to create the trial wine at the Cambon la Pelouse Winery. Emma Wood played a pivotal role during the Bordeaux harvest, together with our French colleagues on the ground.
What are the 2022 releases?
Following the inaugural release of Penfolds Californian wines in 2021, the next iteration will launch as part of the 2022 Collection – continuing an endeavour that was started more than 20 years ago when Penfolds winemakers first began experimenting with Californian soils. This year’s release includes the 2019 Bin 149 Cabernet Sauvignon, Bin 704 Cabernet Sauvignon and Bin 600 Cabernet Shiraz.
this year’s Collection will be marked by a series of events around the world called “Venture Beyond by Penfolds.” These events will be disruptive, immersive, and fun, including a mix of masterclasses, artist collaborations, and culturally-driven performance pieces, all of which will be based on the brand theme “Venture Beyond.”
The Penfolds Collection 2022 includes the following wines:
French
2019 Penfolds II Cabernet Shiraz Merlot: A partnership between
Penfolds and Dourthe.
2019 FWT 585
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot
Australian
2018 Grange
2020 Yattarna Chardonnay
2020 RWT Bin 798 Barossa Valley Shiraz
2019 Bin 169 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon
2020 Magill Estate Shiraz
2019 St Henri Shiraz
2021 Reserve Bin A Adelaide Hills Chardonnay
2020 Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz
2020 Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon
2020 Bin 150 Marananga Shiraz
2020 Bin 28 Shiraz
2020 Bin 128 Coonawarra Shiraz
2020 Bin 138 Barossa Valley Shiraz Grenache Mataro
2021 Bin 23 Pinot Noir
2021 Bin 311 Chardonnay
2022 Bin 51 Eden Valley Riesling
Californian
2019 Bin 149 Cabernet Sauvignon
2019 Bin 704 Cabernet Sauvignon
2019 Bin 600 Cabernet Shiraz
The Penfolds Collection 2022 wines are available now at Penfolds Cellar Doors (Magill Estate Winery and Barossa Valley Cellar Door) in Australia and select fine wine stores globally. For more information, click here.
