Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz 2021

Scores

97 / 100

"Deep crimson. Classical Bin 389 with intense blackberry, dark chocolate, mocha aromas and roasted almond, roasted chestnut, hint sesame nuances. Generous, smooth and velvety with ample blackberry, dark chocolate, roasted chestnut/ roasted walnut, grilled nut flavours, fine loose knit chocolaty tannins, beautifully integrated oak complexity and sinuous long fresh minerally saline acidity. Finishes velvety firm with a fine tannin plume. A superb vintage which will develop and improve further with bottle age."
- Andrew Caillard MW

96 / 100

"Winemaker Andrew Baldwin observes that in a vintage as strong as 2021, parcels that might otherwise have been reserved for Grange and Bin 707 have found their way into Bin 389. The result is a monumental Bin 389 that unites all of the enduring structure and potential that underline the pedigree of this fabled label with the definition and precision of the fantastic 2021 season. It unites a core of pristine blackcurrant cabernet fruit with the plum skin of shiraz and a backdrop of fine-grained American oak that will see it through effortless decades in the cellar. Strictly for the long-term. 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Shiraz, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Barossa Valley Wrattonbully, Padthaway, 12 months maturation in 37% new American oak hogsheads."
- Tyson Stelzer

97 / 100

"This is a truly great 389, perhaps the best ever. The Cabernet (53%) just dominates the Shiraz (47%). A blend of McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Barossa Valley, Wrattonbully and Padthaway, the wine spends a year in American oak hogsheads, 37% new. Dark maroon in colour, the aromas include plums, mulberries, mocha, leather, tobacco leaves, dry herbs and hints of a freshly rolled cigar plus a touch of blueberries. There is finesse yet intensity, focus and direction, and balance. Great length and silky tannins. Notes of chocolate, licorice and blueberries emerge on the palate. A wine which lingers with intent suggesting ageing potential of twenty years plus. Wonderful stuff, the score that has every chance of going even higher. A cracker!"
- Wine Pilot

96 / 100

"This combines sweet, ripe fruit with substantial structure, and is a true vin de garde that should evolve well in the cellar. Lots of stuffing here, with spicy blackcurrant fruit and some sleek cherry and blackberry, backed by well integrated spicy oak and a bit of tannic grip."
- Jamie Goode

93 / 100

"The 2021 Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz is creamy and densely packed with flavor (packed!), and the American oak is a core part of the wine, both aromatically and in the mouth. The fruit is from McLaren, Coonawarra, Barossa Valley, Wrattonbully and Padthaway and comprises 53% Cabernet Sauvignon and 47% Shiraz. The cooler season has imbued the wine with a freshness and levity, which, if you asked me prior to tasting, I would have said it was impossible to imbue levity in the Bin 389! But there you have it. Epic intensity, present oak. Give it time. I have tasted 30-year-old Bin 389s in the past that have still been alive and fresh. So, the cellar is the place for this vintage. 14.5% alcohol, sealed under natural cork."
- Erin Larkin

Tasting Notes