Penfolds Bin 169 Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Penfolds Wines

"For the record, 2021 is exceptional across South Australia. Choosing the best wines is, at times, like pulling needles from a haystack. Crushed blackcurrants, a waft of sage, dried lavender and black olive paste are lathered across an impenetrably juicy finish that runs very long. A lick of Coonawarra menthol. Just a lick. This will age very well and I may be underscoring this today. Drinkable now, but best from 2026.” 96 points James Suckling’s Ned Goodwin

97 points Decanter’s Tina Gellie “As with the multi-region Bin 707, the Coonawarra-only Bin 169 returns in 2021 after a year of absence due to fruit quality in 2020 not being up to par. And what a return it is in this near-perfect vintage for Coonawarra, demonstrating why this region is so fêted for Cabernet Sauvignon. More on an elegant red-fruit spectrum than the dense, dark black berries of Bin 707, this is correspondingly lithe and lifted, with exotic notes of potpourri, blue ink, fresh mint tea and liquorice joining concentrated boysenberry, pomegranate, cigar box spice, and firm but fine coffee tannins. Very complex and layered with a welcome light hand on the oak: 16 months in French hogsheads, 51% new. Exceptional this vintage, speaks strongly of its terroir and represents a great buy for the price.”