Penfolds Grange - help

[CHRIS27]

Hello, this is my first post in this forum.

I am after some help regarding a bottle of Penfolds Grange.

I am getting married on the 13th Feb 2010 and have thought it would be a good idea for myself and wife to share a special bottle of red on the night over dinner and reception.

What i need to know is what is a good Grange for me to buy? i want something special and something that is obviously good to drink right now?

Some of you might say that were supposed to keep this kind of red for a few years but its purely to celebrate the occassion of our wedding.

Im looking at spending prob no more than $500 a bottle, or there abouts.

If anyone could give me the name, year and price of what they think will be the ideal red i would very much appreciat it.

thankyou.

[bacchaebabe]

83, 76 and 71 are the better vintages that are drinking well right now but you'll probably pay a lot more than $500 for the 71 and 76 but might be able to find an 83 around that price.

From the not quite so good (but not bad) vintages, pretty well anything in the 80s (but not the 86 as this is too young and will be more than $500 anyway) would be drinking well. Anything from 1990 on would be a bit young in my opinion.

If you get something from the late 80s (post 86) make sure you decant it for a little while beforehand if at all possible. Early 80s (pre 86) should be right with a straight decant when you open it (except the 83 which might need an hour or so).

As it will be your wedding day, the vintages requiring the deacant could be done the night before. Just pour the wine carefully into a decanter trying to disturn the sediment as little as possible and let the wine breathe in the decanter for an hour. Wash the bottle of the sediment and pour the wine back into the bottle after the hour and seal it with a new cork. I suspect the old one will be quite crumbly. You should then be right to go on the day.

Some of the late 70s should also be fine and won't require the prior decant. It's going to be largely up to you as to what you are able to find. They should be cheaper at auction but leave yourself plenty of time for it to be delivered. You may have better luck at a retail outlet but be careful the wine hasn'tbeen sitting in a hot shop for years.

What city are you in? We may be able to recommend some likely places to buy from.

[CHRIS27]

Thanks for the help, thats some good info you've given me

Im in Melbourne, and i must say i never thought about having to decanter it.

So i guess i should start searching for a bottle right away then.

thanks

[pstarr]

Or for a wedding in the heart of an Australian summer, perhaps spend the $500 on some stellar Champagne?

[monghead]

Paul, I was just thinking a prestige champagne for Chris's wedding too. Otherwise a good red burgundy. Much more palatable in this heat...

[pstarr]

Yeah, it's 37 degrees here at the moment - no time for a big shiraz for me (but a 2001 Ashton Hills sparkling shiraz went down very well with bbq roo last night).

Krug at the wedding might set a precedent for Krug every wedding anniversary though...

[TiggerK]

Krug at the wedding might set a precedent for Krug every wedding anniversary though...

You say that like it'll be a bad thing

Personally, I go 2 bottles, one bubbly, one red maybe? Others may well want a taste (best man, bridesmaid etc...) and you'll be more keen to give them a splash if you have a second in reserve. Wine is always nicer when shared amongst friends (and besides, then they'll know what to buy you in future on special occasions!).

I'd look at a tasty Champagne, Krug NV, Pol Winston Churchill 98, Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque 99 (great looking bottle and makes a great candle holder souvenir), that kind of thing.
And a nice red without going as far as Grange, which in my opinion is a lovely wine, but not worth the money unless you hit a well stored, good cork bottle at 20-40+ years old. Not that I've had much of it, but from what I have had, other wines can give equal or similar pleasure for less than half, and you won't then be quite so upset if it's not a good bottle. Teusner 'FG' Shiraz 06, Bin 707 or 389 96/98, Torbreck Runrig 98/02/04, St Henri etc all come to mind.

And congratulations !!

Cheers
TiggerK

[Decca]

I wouldn't have Grange at a wedding. There's too much else going on and the wine experience is likely to be somewhat 'lost' amongst it.
Sure, it has a certain cache and impact value but I would go with a Grange for a future anniversary. Then you can pair it with certainly something better than reception food, either at home or a classy restaurant and totally enjoy it without the distraction of the wedding day.

You could go for few classy bottles at around $80 -100 bottle and still get a wow factor and a bit more wine to share.

I'd go for a classy shiraz over a cabernet as they generally show better when young, Grange an obvious exception. Something like a 2005 / 2006 Henschke Mount Edelstone Shiraz, 2004 Peter Lehmann Stonewell Shiraz or 2005 St Henri. All current releases.

[CHRIS27]

Thankyou all for your responces.

Decca, you raise an excellent point, if i were to buy a $500 ish bottle it would almost certainly not be enjoyed as it should with all the socialising to be done by myself and wife and trying to get around to talk and thank everyone. There wouldnt be enought time to just sit down and appreciate it.

Perhaps i will look into some other suggested wines some of you have listed.

thanks again, (you also just saved me quite a bit of money, haha, thanks)

[rens]

Hi Chris and welcome.
I think you have made the right choice. Save the Grange for another occasion. Personally I would go for the 2006 Teusner FG. At around $130 it is good value and a good drink now and would be a great drink (if stored well) at your 20th wedding anniversary too. I tasted it up against the 2003 grange (way to young) and the 1997. I rated it higher than both of the granges.

[monghead]

Nah, I say do it.

How much are you spending on this already? And this wine is just for you and your wife. I think that is nice (perhaps a little elitist, and un-PC...... what are the rest having?....... but I digress.........)

To put things into perspective:
- Hire cars- $xxx (cab ride $50)
- Dress- $xxxx (myer $200)
- Dinner- $xxxxx (thai $100 for two)

So if you usually drink a $20-30 wine for dinner, stretching it to a $500 bottle is equivalent to what you have done for everything else this day...

My 2c worth...

Cheers,

Monghead.

BTW- Congratulations, and all the best.

[GraemeG]

I wouldn't have Grange at a wedding. There's too much else going on and the wine experience is likely to be somewhat 'lost' amongst it.
Sure, it has a certain cache and impact value but I would go with a Grange for a future anniversary. Then you can pair it with certainly something better than reception food, either at home or a classy restaurant and totally enjoy it without the distraction of the wedding day.

Yup. If you've got more than 15 guests at the reception you won't have a chance to properly taste/drink any wine. And if you've got fewer than 15, then you can afford something really decent for everyone.
cheers,
Graeme

[Eurocentric]

Agree to skip the Grange and have an 88/90/96 Krug back in the honeymoon suite. Try Winehouse in Melbourne, who source old stuff from good private cellars. I've bought old Dom Perignon from them with success.

[fatdoi]

i agree getting cheaper bottle/s & save the grange for 2 of you later...... my choice will be to get 2 bottles of shiraz like torbreck the factor, two hands ares or... even a few st. henri (96, 98) are really good too

congras....

[orpheus]

Agree to skip the Grange and have an 88/90/96 Krug back in the honeymoon suite. Try Winehouse in Melbourne, who source old stuff from good private cellars. I've bought old Dom Perignon from them with success.

Yes, the 1990 Krug was a spectacular champagne when I drank it a couple of years ago. I imagine it would be drinking at its peak now.