2004 | Penfolds | Penfolds Block 42 Kalimna

This is incredibly dark. Minty, herbal notes combine with chocolate and cassis to yield a complex, balanced whole. Despite the density of the fruit, there’s absolutely no sense of heaviness or excessive weight, and while the tannins appear creamy on the midpalate, they fan out into a silky sheen on the lingering finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: It’s not known exactly when the Kalimna Block 42 was planted but there are suggestions that the vines existed during the latter part of the 19th Century. They could be the oldest Cabernet vines in the world, although the famous Metala Cabernet vineyard in Langhorne Creek was known to have been planted in 1891 so could very well pre-date Kalimna. Regardless, I’ve been there and the vines are truly old. Only very rarely does Penfolds release this as a single vineyard wine, when the Cabernet is so fabulous it can’t possibly be blended. The 2004 Block 42 Kalimna Cabernet Sauvignon was such a vintage. Matured in 100% new American hogsheads for 13 months, it displays a very deep garnet-purple color and profoundly earthy / gamey aromas over black cherry preserves, creme de cassis plus scents of leather, pencil shavings, Mediterranean herbs, black truffles, underbrush and black olives. The elegant, medium-bodied palate is tightly-knit and led by structure with a high level of grainy tannins, very high acid and a long earthy finish. Approachable now, it should continue to evolve and drink to 2025+.

• James Suckling: This is phenomenal, with game, meat, deer and fruit. Black truffles. Wild fruit. Insane. Black and green olives. Full bodied, with big velvety tannins and a long, long finish. Amazing sliced meat and fruit character. Fabulous wine that just blows me away and makes me think of great pre-phyloxera Bordeaux of 1864 and 1865. From vines in the mid-1880s. About 10 acres. 500 cases. Screwcap.

Producer Information

Penfolds is Australia's most famous wine producer, best known for its flagship wine Grange, one of the most acclaimed wines in the world. The historic estate has pioneered the wine industy of Australia since its inception in the mid-19th Century. Among many other accolades, the 1955 Grange was named one of the top 12 wines of the 20th Century by Wine Spectator Magazine; the 1971 vintage was ranked as the greatest wine of the 1970s by FINE Wine Magazines and tastingbook.com, and the 2008 gained a perfect 100-point score from both Wine Spectator and Robert Parker's Wine Advocate. It is a mainstay of the secondary market – auction prices for the wine have regularly been used as key performance indicators for the wider Australian economy. Occasionally Grange is 100-percent Shiraz – the 2011 was the sixth time that happened in six decades – but more typically it also contains up to around 15 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. It is the flagship for Penfolds' celebrated multi-vineyard, multi-region blending philosophy, and is sourced from Barossa, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra (occasionally) and Magill Estate at the base of the Adelaide Hills, just to the east of the city. Penfolds has a long-standing reputation for consistent high quality across its broad portfolio, and there are several other wines that feature regularly in auctions, including the Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon, St. Henri and RWT Shiraz wines, Bin 389 Cabernet – Shiraz and Bin 407 Cabernet Sauvignon. These have been joined by experimental or periodic releases such as the Block 42 Cabernet Sauvignon and Bin 60a Cabernet – Shiraz. In 2018, the portfolio was expanded into California with the release of the Bin 704 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. A desire to introduce a flagship white led to the 1995 debut of the Yattarna Chardonnay of which is still produced to this day. The extensive portfolio includes numerous other bin-numbered releases, the Max's, Koonunga Hill and Cellar Reserve ranges, and a selection of tawny fortified wines.

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