Description
The 10-acre Block 42 was planted only 30 years after the great 1855 Bordeaux Classification and comprises the oldest plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon continuously produced in the world. The recent 2004 vintage resulted in beautifully aromatic, perfectly balanced and ripe Cabernet Sauvignon from Block 42, Kalimna Vineyard. The fruit was handpicked and fermented in ‘headed down’ static fermenters. The wine completed fermentation entirely in seasoned new oak hogsheads.
The 10-acre Block 42 comprises what are believed to be the oldest plantings of continuously producing cabernet sauvignon vines in the world. For over 120 vintages these vines have produced flavour-intense, mineral-rich fruit with exceptional concentration and balance.
Providing ‘lift and structure’, Block 42 Cabernet Sauvignon was blended into many early bottlings of Penfolds Grange. The Block 42 vineyard continues to be an important component of Bin 707, providing backbone and substance to the overall style.
There have only been a handful of releases across the decades due to the low-yielding nature of the Block 42 site. The most recent was made from the 2004 vintage and was sold en primeur – Penfolds was the first Australian winery to use this selling method made famous by the chateaux of Bordeaux.
With a bit of luck, ideal weather conditions, the right parcels of fruit and when the fruit is not required for Bin 707, Block 42 will continue to be periodically released – potentially more than once in a decade.
Exceptional vintage conditions in the Barossa Valley in 1996 presented Penfolds winemakers with the opportunity to make this one-off, special bin wine in the tradition of the legendary Bin 60A, Bin 7 and Bin 90A. Penfolds Kalimna Block 42 was made from a single block – Block 42 – of the renowned Penfolds Kalimna vineyard, the oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in Australia.
The wine was made from the same 110-year-old patch of vines from which came Max Schubert’s 1953 Grange Cabernet. Penfolds Block 42 is a captivating example of a single block of high-quality Kalimna Cabernet Sauvignon, featuring concentrated varietal flavours, complexity of balanced oak and a fine tannin finish.
Winemaker comments by Peter Gago – Penfolds Chief Winemaker
COLOUR Dense plum red.
NOSE Compelling savoury and spicy notes – ginger, nutmeg and cardamom – interwoven with carob/ dark chocolate flavours against a background of lightly charred, cedary oak.
PALATE Archetypical Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon – perfectly balanced and integrated with no rough edges. Concentrated fruits – blackcurrant and dark plum – merge into the chocolate and liquorice spectrum. Hints of black olive and mineral elements.
