Penfolds St Henri Shiraz 2013

Penfolds St Henri Shiraz 2013St Henri is a time honoured and alternative expression of Shiraz, and an intriguing counterpoint to Grange. It is unusual among high quality Australian red wines as it does not rely on any new oak. Released for the first time by Penfolds in the early 1950s (first commercial vintage 1957), it gained a new lease of life in the 1990s as its quality and distinctive style became better understood. Proudly, a wine style that hasn't succumbed to the dictates

my mother being a good Catholic lady

and it seems to be a combination of perfect growing conditions of 2023 and a more restrained approach to reduction and sulfides in the wine

with a focusing on refining the classic wines – particularly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir – that the Mornington Peninsula does so well

As the trend for reductive

was the viticulturist

he also started making small parcels of his own wine

I love what this wine shows in the glass

balanced fruit on each vine

A taut structure of zippy acid

and spice that just soar from the glass

Grange always matures for eons and no doubt this release will too

beautifully dense