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95POINTS
18/20
Penfolds Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 149 2018
World BlendBin 149 is all cabernet sauvignon and mostly Napa single-block stars, but it is also reinforced with what winemaker Peter Gago says is flagship-worthy South Australian cabernet sauvignon. The Oz juice flows from a highly evolved evaluation process that Gago and the team go through every Penfolds vintage. The result is an elegant, black-fruited cabernet with a bit more acidity to turn Euro heads and a bit more structural texture to please modern New World cab drinkers. What it takes back to an Oz audience is a voluptuous, exuberant California style with no mid-palate holes. It is no chocolate/cherry red but rather a colossal cabernet rich in layers of black fruit and dense fine-grained tannins, suggesting ten years would be an appropriate time for this wine to spend in the cellar. Look for a spicy, olive, umami thread that keeps the fruit in check, along with some famous Napa menthol notes to add complexity. It is seriously good. All of the wine is aged in new oak with an 80/20 split of French and American. Today Penfolds is a part of the Treasury Wine Estates portfolio, giving senior winemaker Stephanie Dutton, winemaker Andrew Baldwin, and chief winemaker Peter Gago access to prime Napa Valley and Sonoma County sites to assemble what has been labelled the California Collection. Interestingly, in the Gago way, the California winemakers are invited to taste the collection as it goes together, to share ideas and experiences. Still, in the end, Gago and Oz winemakers make the final decisions regarding The California Collection.Tasted: 18 February 2021Tasted by: Anthony GismondiPrices:| CDN | $299.00 | 750ml | West (Summer 2021); East (Fall 2021) |
Grape: Cabernet SauvignonUPC: 012354724372
