Penfolds Grange: the Australian wine icon celebrates the release of its 2004 vintage
Australia’s ‘most famous wine’ will see its annual release date coming up on the 1st of May. There couldn’t be a more contrasting wine release happening on what is celebrated in many parts of the world the ‘Day of Work’. Workers and unions in many European countries use this day to remind us of the workman’s rights and roles in our society.
Here in Australia the wine trade celebrates the release of its icon – Penfolds Grange – the main two questions always being, whether the new vintage can hold up to the sensational 1996 release and whether the price per bottle has gone up again.
Penfolds Grange - new release
If you ask the international wine community about the best known wine from Down Under, almost everyone will mention Penfolds Grange. Hence I started reading ‘The Rewards of Patience’ from Andrew Caillard a few days ago to get a better insight into how Grange Hermitage reached its cult status. The book is an excellent read of the story of the house of Penfolds and its wines.
Herein the story of Grange is written by Max Schubert himself, the father of Penfolds Grange. Schubert starts by saying that ‘his’ wine has “always been a controversial and individual wine” since he started in the 1950s. Controversial – oh yes: Schubert received comments such as this one when the first Grange came to market: “.. I congratulate you. A very good, dry port, which no one in their right mind will buy – let alone drink.”
But Schubert continued to experiment and ignored the harsh criticism that he received from friends and colleagues. He even ignored his employer’s request to stop producing this wine; but with the support of Jeffrey Penfold Hyland he secretly continued to make Grange in small quantities.
The subsequent years have told us, that Max Schubert was right in both his mind and in judging that this wine would become an icon for his employer. Penfolds today is owned by Australia’s largest liquor group Foster’s and when the newest release hits the shelves of Australia’s retailers this Friday, we will have to come up with $600 per bottle.
600 Australian Dollars – that is a lot of money for a bottle of red and not surprisingly not only the wine media here Down Under asks whether a bottle of Penfolds Grange is really worth that much money? As much as the Penfolds parent company Foster’s Group enjoys a profitable wine brand within their rather difficult wine portfolio, there are a few signs which will question the continuing market success of it: nobody can ignore the reality of a recession as well as the changes in wine taste in Australia and abroad.
For me Grange represents Australia’s wine style of the 20th century, a great wine blowing you away with its opulence and flavours. But at the same time wine from Australia has moved on. Australian winemakers today bring us excellent wines from single vineyards (instead of Grange’s collection of flavoursome shiraz grapes from various vineyards). So many interesting cool climate varieties and the use of French oak instead of barrel-fermenting in new American oak – Australian wine is about diversity these days. And even Penfolds has realised the signs of times, they have broadened their portfolio with the Bin 311 Chardonnay, the more subdued RWT Shiraz or even its Pinot Noir with grapes from cool climate Adelaide Hills.
Will this stop me from tasting a 2004 Grange? Certainly not and I congratulate Penfolds for their Grange success, both here in Australia and on a global scale. At the end of the day, international recognition of an Australian wine icon helps all other (smaller) wineries on their challenging way to capture a following in overseas markets.
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Alljaehrlich feiern wir hier Down Under am 1. Mai den Release des neusten Jahrgangs des Penfolds Grange. Der 2004er Jahrgang verspricht nach ersten Tests besser zu sein, als sein erfolgreichster Vorgaenger aus juengster Vergangenheit – der Grange aus dem Jahr 1996. Trotz des strammen und erhoehten Preises von 600 Australischen Dollars werde ich am kommenden Freitag eine Flasche erwerben und dann davon berichten.
Ihr Michael Brecht
The quotes about the story of Penfolds were taken from: The Rewards of Patience by Andrew Caillard, sixth edition, Allen & Unwin – a great read for the wine enthusiast downunder.
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