2006 Penfolds Grange

Name: 2006 Penfolds Grange
Brand: Vino Fandango
Price: 450.0 GBP
Availability: InStock

£450.00

Tasting Notes

Grange is arguably Australia's most celebrated wine and is officially listed as a Heritage Icon of South Australia. Grange boasts an unbroken line of vintages from the experimental 1951 and clearly demonstrates the synergy between Shiraz and the soils and climates of South Australia. Penfolds Grange displays fully-ripe, intensely-flavoured and textured Shiraz grapes. The result is a unique Australian style that is now recognised as one of the most consistent of the world's great wines. The Grange style is the original and most powerful expression of Penfolds multi-vineyard, multidistrict blending philosophy.

Colour

Deep blood-red, dense core.

Nose

Very Penfolds, very Barossa, very Grange! Scents, now five years in the making, weave their charm - this aromatic quilt's first-noted brightest colours are panaforte fig and quince paste alongside cured/smoked meats. Its fabric is meshed with spice - cinnamon, vanillin pod, nutmeg and black pepper - tempered by teppanyaki sauces, amaretto/almond. A dark thread connects - black liquorice, olive and fresh Arabica coffee-bean and soy. Background nutty oak (Brazil nut) beneath, yet barely noticed.

Palate

Freshness and balance are welcomed, yet confuse... a few sips remind of the oft-used reference 'iron fist in a velvet glove'. All is not as it seems! Firm throughout and across palate - reverent tannins and oak convey & propel flavours of slow-roasted lamb (avec jus), dark chocolate, cola, maraschino, with a menthol/rosemary lift to finish. Alluringly, a plush satin/cashmere mouthfeel compounds the initial confusion - accessible, yet poised to evolve and complex over many decades.

Remarks

"A profound and complete offer - akin to a mix of the 2002 and 2004 Grange vintages respectively... not a bad credential on any curriculum vitae!
If one were to propagate the Penfolds 'sixes' vintage roll-out pattern - it's probably more like the '86 & '96 than the '76" - P.Gago, April 2011

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 98+ points

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 though the fruit purity. Patience is required for this vintage; it should begin opening out around 2016 and drink to 2030+.

Wine & Spirits - 96 points

As chief winemaker, Peter Gago has made his mark on several of the newer Penfolds wines, including RWT and Yattarna. The style of Grange, with one of the longest track records of any South Australian red, is slower to evolve—but it does change, and the style of this 2006 makes it the clearest Gago Grange yet. Part of that is the vintage; part of that is what Gago did with the vintage. This wine doesn’t shout; it purrs. Nor does it sit still. It rolls around over raspberry bliss, under a supple caress of tannins, through an earthy chocolate and mushroom savor. The dynamic structure involves all the elements in a tangle of youthful energy, the old-vine fruit achieving something close to perfection in its form. New oak dominates at this early stage of its evolution, but this is set to become a great Grange.

Wine Enthusiast - 94 points

Not quite the massive monster that is the 2004 Grange, the 2006 is still no shrinking violet. It's full-bodied, muscular and extracted, and while the flavors veer towards expresso and dark chocolate, there's also a ribbon of raspberry fruit running through the wine from start to long, dusty finish. Drink 2015-2025, and probably beyond.

Please Note

A collector's item! We believe this wine to be wonderful - however, as with all aged wines, it comes with a 'Buyers be aware' clause, and some labels may not be perfect. If you have any queries, please just drop us an email or give us a call!

Specifications

Year	2006
Bottle Size	750ml
Cultivar	98% Shiraz, 2% Cabernet Sauvignon
Country	Australia
Alcohol content	14.5% alc vol
Units of Alcohol per Bottle	10.9 units
Type	Red Blend
Cellaring Potential	2046 - Penfolds Rewards of Patience VI Edition, 2008.
Allergen Information	Contains sulphites
Food Matches	Mayura Wagyu, sweetcorn, house-sprouted legumes & crisp sprout leaves.
Origin	Barossa Valley, Coonawarra and Magill
Appellation	South Australia