1984 Grange

Sourced from the Barossa Valley, Magill Estate (Adelaide), McLaren Vale, Clare Valley and Coonawarra.

A cool summer followed by dry conditions towards the harvest season. Shiraz (95%), Cabernet Sauvignon (5%).

Matured in new American oak hogsheads for 20 months.

Don Ditter, Penfolds chief winemaker

90/100

This has always been one of the softer, more civilized, and subtle examples of Grange Hermitage. It does not possess the structure or tannin of the 1983, the concentration, extraction, or class of the 1982, or the massiveness of the 1981.

Nevertheless, it is an outstanding wine with good fatness, a clean, cassis and oak-scented nose, a rich, full-bodied personality, a velvety texture, and light tannin in the finish. Although drinkable, it is not yet fully mature from a complexity perspective.

This satiny-styled Grange should drink well for another 10-15 years.

Robert M. Parker Jr., Wine Advocate #100, August 1995

91/100

Harvey Steiman, Wine Spectator, 31 January 1997

90/100

Jeremy Oliver, www.jeremyoliver.com