TN 1971 Penfolds St Henri

[wine bloke]

Santa was good to me this year.

A bottle of '71 St Henri in excellent condition slipped into the stocking. Thanks Dad.

Before opening it, I tried to find out how previous bottles had been drinking. The only info I could source was from Penfold's Rewards for Patience. I was a touch sceptical at first, Penfold's having a fairly reasonable sourcing network to find a bottle in excellent condition.

After some deliberation, I decided that some old friends would enjoy it with me.




[/b]1971 Penfold's St Henri
The first thing I noticed after taking the foil off, was the cork. 35 years old and looking very healthy. Screw, pull and pop, the whole cork in one piece.
The wine coats the glass is still dark and vibrant, with just a hint of red brick hues.
The aroama is massive with some other people at the next table commenting that they could smell it. Blackberries and cedar being dominant, with undertones of chocolate and aniseed.
The mouthfill is amazing, seemless integration and structure. Primary fruit is still evident with blackberries and sour cherries driving into a complex combination of sweet and savoury flavours. The length and finish suprise me. Fruit, fruit, fruit all the way to the last drop in the mouth.
Flavours finally come back well after swallowing and linger.

Unbelievable!! I have tried 10 year old wines ( icons/ benchmarks ) that are looking well past their shelf life. This wine was amazing, friut driven, with well textured oak, long lasting finish and unbelievable depth and weight.

Think I might go over to Dad's, have a look under his bed and see what else he has stashed.

Cheers, Wine Bloke

[Muscat Mike]

Think I might go over to Dad's, have a look under his bed and see what else he has stashed.
Cheers, Wine Bloke

Careful WB, you might find the Swedish Girl.
Mike.

[707]

Ooh yes, that Swedish girl, might even make me forget reds for a short time!

1971 was an excellent vintage in this part of the world. I still have fond memories of the 1971 Tollana TR222 which made a batch of 1976 Second Growth Bordeaux look second rate at a tasting around 1980.

Wish I was there to enjoy the 71 St.Henri with you.

[Gianna]

WB,

I recently had the 1986 and was also blown away as to how good this wine can be. I suspect over the years wines such as St Henri and 389 have been world class quaffers and a little bit of hidden secret to the masses as to how well they can really age. Hence, why people seem to be so passionate about Penfolds...

I have a few more 86 and 83 St Henri's and I await in anticipation to open the next one.