Penfolds Grange Shiraz 2014

Wonderful and substantial wine with a superb velvety finish. Complete freak of a wine. 100PTS Andrew Caillard MW, The Vintage Journal Verticals Penfolds Grange 2022.

There is an extraordinary chypre and warm earth note about this wine which leads the way and the fruit follows on minutes behind dutifully allowing the vine and its wood and earth to take centre stage. Like Bin 707, this is a phenomenal wine and it opens so slowly and relentlessly it is amazing. Like a silent, slow-motion, ballet troupe showing power, poise, grace and movement, this is an elite wine and it parades its anti-fruit notes as much as it does its grape-derived flavours. This points to a massive ageing potential and also the patience required to appreciate this wine at its peak which I feel might be in thirty or more years' time. A difficult wine to assess in a score, I am tempted to give it a near perfect score because there is still the question of whether it will complete its flavour-quest before it starts to tire, but I am confident that there are enough pointers here already to reward it with another perfect score. This means that Penfolds is the first winery in the world to get two 20/ 20s in one single release. 100PTS (20/20) Matthew Jukes

Deep, dense youthful red/purple colour. The bouquet is a riot of preserved plums, mocha, smoky toasty oak - less obvious than the Granges of yore - with hints of tar and graphite. The wine is full-bodied but it's not a blockbuster. It's dense and concentrated, but not overpowering. Indeed, the wine is superbly balanced and has even a touch of elegance. The tannins are certainly abundant, with a touch of traditional Grange firmness, but it's a very easy Grange to understand and enjoy. Less likely to intimidate! (2% cabernet sauvignon). 98PTS Huon Hooke, The Real Review