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Written by Craig Thomson
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2004 Penfolds Grange. It was brilliant to get a chance to have a decent sample of this wine for a reasonable cost. At $550+ a bottle it is more a status symbol than a drink these days. It is good to have an opinion though on this wine not based on things outside the glass, especially for a vintage so lauded. Dark purple black in the glass, the nose of this wine definitely is aristocratic with a full array of deep set old leather seat, deep spice and dark tarry black fruits. The palate is precise, restrained and layered and at this stage dominated a little by chocolate, malty oak but with plenty of textured dark fruits underneath. It is a modern wine with elegant tannins and the term “saturated” which I have read elsewhere describing is definitely apt. It is a wine with a long future but for me the oak and associated flavours dominated a bit on the palate and it just lacked a bit of wow factor. Immediately I compared back to when I tasted the 2004 Penfolds Block 42 Kalimna Cabernet Sauvignon a few months ago. My feeling is I preferred that over Grange for it purity of fruit expression. I have a similar conclusion to make when comparing the 2004 Grange to my favourite vintage Grange; 1996. Immediately after trying the 2004 Grange today, I sampled again the 2006 Craggy Range Block 14 Syrah. This is a wine I could buy 2 cases of at the moment for the same price as one bottle of Grange. To be honest, I enjoyed the Craggy Range more. It is really singing at the moment. I am thinking perhaps the market forces that allow a realisation of $550 for Grange somehow are not connected completely to common sense. 98+/109
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 09 May 2009 )
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