Warning Flags from Australia
Disappointing results from Penfolds Grange and Henschke Hill of Grace
Penfolds Grange and Henschke Hill of Grace are the marquee wines of Australia, the gold standards for Shiraz. But the vintages coming onto the market this year ought to give pause to fans of these Australian icons, both of which are priced north of $200 a bottle.
Grange is one of the most consistent wines I know. I have participated in vertical tastings covering every vintage made, and it's rare to find a less than outstanding wine. They age beautifully. They are usually packed with rich fruit character, framed with sweet, spicy oak, and they have layers and layers of complex flavors.
But the 2000, due for release this month, is unusually meager, the first new Grange I have rated below 90 points in the 12 years I have been responsible for tasting Australian wine for Wine Spectator. Firm and chewy in texture, it has earthy, gamy notes running through the cedary, spicy finish. There isn't much prominent fruit. It has intensity and persistence, but the flavor profile is not attractive at this point. I rated it 89 points, and that was the best of three bottles I tried in blind tastings. The other two seemed even earthier and less generous.
Although 2000 was not a great vintage in South Australia, it still produced some rich wines, most notable Elderton Command (97 points), E&E Black Pepper (96 points) and Penfolds' own RWT (95 points). Penfolds makes a range of high-end Shiraz-based reds, and the winery claims that it dedicates the best cuvées from the best vineyards for Grange. However, the RWT, released two years ago, was much more impressive, showing the kind of richness and depth Grange 2000 doesn't have.
The only comparable stumble for Grange, in my blind tastings, was the 1997 vintage. It was also a very un-Grange-like vintage, relatively light and fruity, a very pleasant wine, but with less depth than usual. It scored 92 points. Grange usually scores in the 95-99 range. I am convinced that 2000 should not have been released as Grange.
I must also wave a yellow caution flag over Henschke's Hill of Grace 1999 (82 points, $325). It's a great wine marred with overly gamy flavors. A large number of Henschke's reds from 1998 and especially 1999 have strong barnyard character, a defect in my book. When I tasted other 1999s of Henschke's three years ago (Mt. Edelstone, Abbott's Prayer, Cyril Henschke and Johann's Garden), their rich fruit balanced the gaminess, and they scored better than the newly released '99 Hill of Grace. This wine starts off rich, round and generous with its black cherry, spice and tar flavors, but a strong gamy note builds in intensity through the long finish and just takes over.
Fortunately, whatever was causing the problem in the Henschke winery has apparently been cleared up. Recent vintages of the reds other than Hill of Grace, reviewed over the past year, are blessedly free of this barnyard character. Better taste the '99 before plunking down the big bucks for it.
