Penfolds has released a new $3,000 wine blended from three Grange vintages spanning seven years – 2008, 2012 and 2014, the latter being released in 2018.
A Penfolds first, it’s called Penfolds g3 and only 1,200 bottles have been produced.
Chief winemaker Peter Gago said: “Put simply, it’s Penfolds ‘house style’ distilled. Penfolds g3 is a natural end result of the venerated art of blending. It is a blend where each individual vintage selected delivers a depth of character and flavour honouring our flagship Grange.
“Blending across vintages is part of Penfolds winemaking philosophy and has been since 1844.
“Penfolds Tawny styles, famous in the mid 1800’s, continue a long tradition of fortified wines that celebrate this particular blending style. Winemaking saw this style as a natural progression to apply this technique to a create a new red table wine.”
Peter said the super-premium wine was his idea – not a marketer’s. And it’s not a one-off.
Two of the Grange vintages selected for this wine – 2008 and 2012 – are recognised as some of the finest Granges released.
“It wasn’t about selecting the biggest or the best Grange vintages, in fact it was about making something different – but not just to be different,” Peter said.
“Each Grange vintage component selected to make this wine brings something different to the final blend. Grange 2008 is a big bold wine, 2012 is about elegance and sophistication, while 2014 is a young wine that serves to freshen up the blend.
“This endeavour adds new meaning to Penfolds ongoing pursuit to confidently move into the future while always respecting the ethos of the past and tradition.
“The original experimental 1951 Grange created by Max Schubert is now a wine regarded as one of the world’s most celebrated collectables. Grange is a multi-vineyard, multi-district blend retaining its proven stylistic template to this day.
“The same is true of Penfolds g3 but also across vintages.”