Winery: Penfolds
Region: South Australia
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz
Vintage: 2008
Your Wine Guy says:
A great example of Bin 389. Deep, dark, vibrant crimson purple colour. Magnificent lifted nose of violets, blackcurrants, vanilla and toasted oak with blackberry spice notes. The palate reflects the nose with generous flavours of ripe plum, blackcurrants and liquorice - full bodied and supported by very fine, assertive, yet well balanced tannins, which linger into the aftertaste. Long liquorice, blackcurrant, chocolate and toasted oak aftertaste. A Classic.
96 Points YWG Drink to 2024+
Critics say:
“A classic Bin 389 with deep colour, intense dark cherry, blackcurrant, mocha, paneforte aromas. The palate is rich and chocolaty with dark cherry, praline, sage flavours, fine plentiful tannins and underlying savoury, mocha oak. Finishes bitter sweet. Will develop brilliantly in the cellar.”
94 Points Andrew Caillard MW
“I thought (or it seemed like) Mattinson was taking out the Bins this year, so I tasted this with only one hand on the wheel and one eye on the road..as it were. Opened it at the same time as the 08 407 and thought this was a fair way ahead in terms of interest and quality. That being said, I love 389 and St Henri - my two favourite Penfolds wines.
Black fruit, a little pepper, choc-liquorice and mint backed with toasty oak. It’s rich and ripe with grunty tannin laid on thick delivering a classic 389 mouthful of fruit tempered by some meat and coal-like savoury flavours. It’s not heavy or porty, although it’s large scale, and has the requisite fruit power and structure to see it age well for decades. As a young wine it puts me in mind of the 1998, although this is more approachable and even-tempered. An excellent 389.”
94+ Points Drink 2018 - 2028 Gary Walsh, The Wine Front
The winemaker says:
"Snugly nestled somewhere between the poise of '96 and the power of '98 Bin 389, when these Cabernet Shiraz blends were at this age in the last millennium! As always, the star performer in the Penfolds Bin line-up, consistently hitting the value & quality sweet-spot of Penfolds reds. Worth queuing up for..." Penfolds Chief Winemaker - Peter Gago.
Colour: A dense, dark, dark purple core.
Nose: An instant allure, an inviting & tempting aromatic advance. A veritable baker's / winemaker's kitchen: Firstly, scents of freshly baked & dressed Black Forest Cake, replete with dark chocolate and assorted berries, cherries. Then, aromas of Bread & Butter Pudding / Nut Loaf, adorned with dates, sultanas and walnuts.
Brazenly hovering above - wafts of fresh pipe tobacco coupled with higher notes of beeswax polished leather.
Palate: Lush, expansive & succulent. Balanced, lingering - colluded via conspiring tannins lurking behind masses of blackcurrant & mulberry fruits and a mix of liquorice and mocha. Oak is completely absorbed, yet barrel-ferment complexities still stake their claim. Firm, Formidable, Feisty.
... A bottled & binned Bin 389 impatiently awaiting its release....Peter Gago
Winery/Label Information:
Created by the legendary Max Schubert - creator of Penfold’s Grange - Bin 389 is often referred to as 'Poor Man's Grange' or 'Baby Grange', in part because components of the wine are matured in the same barrels that held the previous vintage of Grange.
First made in 1960, this was the wine that helped to build Penfold’s solid reputation with red wine drinkers. Penfold's Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz has earned a reputation among wine consumers and collectors as an Australian classic. With all its ripe fruit, richness and generosity, the wine has been much loved over several generations of wine drinkers.
Predominantly a Barossa Valley wine at one point, the Bin 389 is now a multi-district South Australian blend with fruit sourced from the Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, Padthaway, McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek and Clare Valley, and more recently, Penfold's new vineyards in Robe and Bordertown. Over the last 40 years Bin 389 has developed a strong identity for its consistency, reliability and value. Wine consumers buy it because it's delicious to drink, even when first released. Collectors appreciate it because the wine over-delivers in terms of quality and longevity for its price. |