Penfolds - Grange 2001

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "It is always a treat to taste Australia’s most famous wine, Penfolds’ Grange cuvee (the word Hermitage has been dropped because of legal issues). The 2001 Grange is one of the few vintages of this cuvee to be composed of 100% Shiraz (the others being 1951, 1952, 1963, 1999, and 2000). Aged 17 months in 100% American oak, and tipping the scales at 14.5% alcohol, the 2001 is undeniably one of the top examples of this wine. At this stage, it appears to eclipse the 1998 and 1996. Inky/blue/purple to the rim, with a stunning perfume of blueberries, blackberries, chocolate, graphite, and earth, it boasts good acidity, huge tannins, magnificent concentration, and a multilayered, textured mouthfeel. It is a big, but impeccably well-balanced Shiraz that should shed some of its structure and tannin over the next 4-5 years, and be at its best between 2010-2030+."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Penfolds Grange is not a wine I often enjoy drinking young. I find it far too massive and lacking in elegance. The 2001 changed my mind in a hurry. It's full bodied, rich, sweet, ripe and packed with waves of juicy berries, but the wine is balanced, round, open and even refined. Tasted blind with about 30 minutes of air, it was already showing well, and like all great wines, it kept getting better in the glass. Interestingly, this is one of the few vintages of Grange produced from 100% Shiraz."

WEINWISSER: "Dichtes, fast undurchdringliches Purpurrot mit violetten Schattierungen. Das konzentrierte Bouquet kommt gleich als gebündelter Strahl mit der Syrah-artigen Barossa-Würze und herrlichen floralen Noten wie Veilchen, dunklem Beerenconfit und Teeblättern. Am Gaumen wieder diese generöse Barossa- Fülle und Würze, dabei extrem geschliffen und stylish, alles andere als fett, sondern durch und durch kühl verwobene Textur mit komplexen Anklängen und langem Abgang. Steht erst ganz am Anfang seiner Entwicklung und könnte zu einem ganz grossen Grange heranwachsen."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, zarter Wasserrand. Zartes Goudron, ein Hauch von Dörrobst, erinnert wieder ganz zart an die Liebstöcklnote anderer Jahrgänge, etwas Honig, saftig, rote Beeren im Nachhall, feine Säurestruktur, Orangenfrucht im Nachhall, schokoladiger Abgang, tolles Potenzial."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Extremely dense and luminous to look at. A particularly warm summer produced this exotic cocktail. Rich, sweet with sufficient acidity, but this is decidedly embryonic with what is still a pretty dry finish. Forget it for a while."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "Not great by Grange standards, but still a fabulous wine, the 2001 Grange boasts an intoxicating, heady bouquet of rich chocolate and coconut. It follows that up with deep, plummy fruit that's full-bodied and lush yet quite tannic, promising decades of ageability. Despite the dark chocolate and plum flavors, the wine is still fresh, with a long finish. Drink 2010–2025."

WINE SPECTATOR: " Deep, rich and concentrated, this one has a gamy note that sneaks through the rich blackberry, plum and licorice flavors, hinting at coffee, dark chocolate and spice as the finish lingers beautifully. Grippy tannins keep it from taking off."