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Piper-Heidsieck Essentiel Blanc de Blancs (Gift Boxed)
Product Description:Purity, freshness and fine mineral definition shape Piper-Heidsieck Essentiel Blanc de Blancs, an Extra Brut Champagne presente...
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Product Description:Purity, freshness and fine mineral definition shape Piper-Heidsieck Essentiel Blanc de Blancs, an Extra Brut Champagne presente...
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Product Description:Savoury complexity, mature-vine concentration and finely controlled structure define the Bannockburn Pinot Noir 2025, a distinc...
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Product Description:Estate-grown depth, cool-climate precision and mature-vine complexity define the Bannockburn Chardonnay 2025, a distinguished e...
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Product Description:Depth, authority and extraordinary ageing potential define the Penfolds Bin 95 Grange Shiraz 2022. Grange represents the most p...
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The Penfolds Grange TrilogyThree defining vintages. One iconic wine. A collector's moment. Some wines are made. Grange is composed. Since 1951, it...
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97 Points
Opulence, aromatic intensity and finely controlled structure define the Penfolds RWT Bin 798 Barossa Valley Shiraz 2024. The initials RWT stand for “Red Winemaking Trial,” the internal name given to the project when development began during the early 1990s. After several years of experimentation, RWT was officially released in May 2000 with the 1997 vintage. The wine was conceived as a contemporary and regionally focused interpretation of Barossa Valley Shiraz, contrasting with the more muscular, multi-regional character of Penfolds Grange. Fruit is selected entirely from the Barossa Valley for its aromatic qualities, varietal definition, fine tannins and naturally plush texture. Unlike Grange, which is traditionally matured in American oak, RWT is matured exclusively in French oak to reinforce its refined and polished character. The 2024 wine spent 14 months in French oak hogsheads, comprising 82% new and 18% one-year-old oak.
The 2024 Barossa Valley season was characterised by below-average winter and spring rainfall, early budburst and reduced yields in several frost-affected vineyard sites. Warm, dry conditions during February accelerated ripening and contributed concentration, while cooler weather following an early-March heat event allowed harvest to conclude in an orderly manner. The wine displays a dark red colour with an impenetrable core and vivid purple rim. Its aromatic profile combines black berries, violets and lavender with dark chocolate, roasted coffee, Brazil nut, pecan pie, olives and savoury cured-meat nuances. The palate is seamless and layered, revealing cranberry, mulberry and blackcurrant alongside dried fig, fennel, pâté, green olive tapenade and espresso liqueur. Succulent fruit and velvety texture are supported by even, mouth-coating tannins and considerable length. Powerful yet finely tuned, the wine possesses the concentration and balance to mature through Penfolds’ recommended drinking window extending to 2050. Presented in a gift box, it offers an appropriately refined format for cellaring, collecting or gifting.
Opulence, aromatic intensity and finely controlled structure define the Penfolds RWT Bin 798 Barossa Valley Shiraz 2024. The initials RWT stand for “Red Winemaking Trial,” the internal name given to the project when development began during the early 1990s. After several years of experimentation, RWT was officially released in May 2000 with the 1997 vintage. The wine was conceived as a contemporary and regionally focused interpretation of Barossa Valley Shiraz, contrasting with the more muscular, multi-regional character of Penfolds Grange. Fruit is selected entirely from the Barossa Valley for its aromatic qualities, varietal definition, fine tannins and naturally plush texture. Unlike Grange, which is traditionally matured in American oak, RWT is matured exclusively in French oak to reinforce its refined and polished character. The 2024 wine spent 14 months in French oak hogsheads, comprising 82% new and 18% one-year-old oak.
The 2024 Barossa Valley season was characterised by below-average winter and spring rainfall, early budburst and reduced yields in several frost-affected vineyard sites. Warm, dry conditions during February accelerated ripening and contributed concentration, while cooler weather following an early-March heat event allowed harvest to conclude in an orderly manner. The wine displays a dark red colour with an impenetrable core and vivid purple rim. Its aromatic profile combines black berries, violets and lavender with dark chocolate, roasted coffee, Brazil nut, pecan pie, olives and savoury cured-meat nuances. The palate is seamless and layered, revealing cranberry, mulberry and blackcurrant alongside dried fig, fennel, pâté, green olive tapenade and espresso liqueur. Succulent fruit and velvety texture are supported by even, mouth-coating tannins and considerable length. Powerful yet finely tuned, the wine possesses the concentration and balance to mature through Penfolds’ recommended drinking window extending to 2050. Presented in a gift box, it offers an appropriately refined format for cellaring, collecting or gifting.
Maturation is in French oak hogsheads, 82% of them new, for a period of fourteen months. The fruit is entirely from the Barossa Valley. An opaque, dark blood red colour, the nose reveals aromas of chocolate, plums, smoked meats, superbly integrated oak, leather, cocoa powder, florals, blueberries, spices and a touch of vanilla. This is absolutely seamless and so beautifully balanced that there is not a hair out of place. Quite juicy acidity and a long persistent finish, there is good energy here and a pleasing freshness. The wine finishes with abundant, powdery tannins. To be enjoyed over the next twenty to thirty years.
Ripe, intense and generous on the oak – which is the RWT way – and many lovers of the style wouldn’t have it any other way. Fourteen months in French oak hogsheads (82% new) is at the heart of the wine, sweeping up the fruit, the spice, the earthiness and hints of savouriness and taking all on one supple, dense, dark berried long ride. Still in building mode, gathering weight and pace with a heart of concentrated flavour lifted in hints of sweet blackcurrant pastille notes and peppery seasoning. Plush across the middle palate and sleek in tannin, an RWT with plenty of polish and big in personality.
Hard, unyielding and muscular, this is one of the firmest and more backward young RWTs I can remember. The fruit is like black marble with no way of cracking into its core. Unlike the chocolate fondant vintages, which I unashamedly like, this is a monastic wine with singular density, coolness and reserve. And guess what? It started to shimmer in the glass after half an hour, and then after an hour it flinched again. Ooh, I am very much enamoured by this wine, and I like the way it moves on its own and when it wants to rather than me dictating its trajectory. This might well be one of the classiest and most intricate RWTs of all time. The fruit integrity is nothing short of epic, so I will throw caution to the wind here with my score! This might well end up being one of, if not the greatest, RWTs ever made.
Founded in 1844 by Dr Christopher and Mary Penfold at Magill Estate in South Australia, Penfolds has grown from a small colonial winery into one of Australia’s most significant wine producers. Its history has been shaped by generations of winemakers willing to challenge convention while preserving a remarkably consistent approach to style and quality.
Mary Penfold played a defining role in the winery’s early development, overseeing production and experimenting with grape varieties and winemaking techniques as the estate expanded. A century later, Max Schubert would transform Penfolds again. Appointed the company’s first Chief Winemaker in 1948, his ambition to create an Australian red capable of developing over decades led to the first experimental Grange in 1951.
That spirit of experimentation has continued through successive generations of Penfolds winemakers. From benchmark Australian wines including Grange, St Henri and Bin 707 to contemporary projects extending beyond Australia, the House has continued to evolve while maintaining a winemaking lineage stretching back more than 180 years.
Penfolds has long approached wine differently. Rather than defining its greatest wines exclusively through a single vineyard or region, the House has built its reputation around a philosophy of blending across vineyards, districts and, where appropriate, regions to achieve a consistent expression of style.
This approach allows the winemaking team to select fruit according to quality and character rather than geography alone. South Australia remains fundamental, with regions including the Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills contributing distinctive elements across the portfolio. Individual vineyards also play important roles, including the historic Magill Estate and Kalimna Vineyard.
Continuity is equally important. Each generation of Penfolds winemakers inherits established wine styles rather than simply imposing its own, refining them as vineyards, vintages and winemaking evolve. Structure, balance and the capacity to develop with age remain central to many of the House’s most important wines.
Today, that philosophy extends from Australia to winemaking projects in California, France and China. The geography may have expanded, but the underlying idea remains recognisably Penfolds: sourcing exceptional fruit and bringing its components together to create a wine greater than any single element.
Blackberry, violet and lavender with dark Belgian chocolate, roasted coffee bean, Brazil nut, pecan pie, bresaola, olives and polished mahogany nuances.
Cranberry, mulberry and blackcurrant with dried fig, mortadella, shaved fennel, pâté, olive tapenade, salsa verde and espresso liqueur.
Succulent dark fruit and savoury complexity linger over even, mouth-coating tannins and finely integrated French oak.