The Auswine Forum

So, reading the reviews online and on other threads here, there seems to be some decent releases and some not so decent ones. Also whether they're indeed worth the amount Penfolds is asking? Is anyone going to buy some of the 2014 release, or just not bother because it's Penfolds? A major national retailer also has a free bottle-of-the-cheap-stuff bargain (if it is even still a bargain?) going around to 'celebrate' the release.

Personally, I'm looking at the Bin 389 Cab Shiraz and Bin 138 SGM, and maybe the Bin 311 Chard and Bin 9 Cab Sav, but the value for money aspect is something that is bugging me, and I'll probably err on the side of saving my pennies for other things.

It's been a long time between posts here for me but i will add my 2c
Southcorp / Fosters / Treasury have all mismanaged this company to the point very few people are actually interested. The pricing from a retail perspective is OTT and quite frankly there is so much good wine out there I have not even considered stocking any where i work. I would rather support smaller players making great juice for the love of it. The wines may be indeed good but who cares anymore? I dont. The pricing seems to be aimed at the export (read Chinese) market. I have not had anyone ask about the bins at all....

Most are kicking the crap out of the 128, but I didn't find it too bad.

Might wait and have a look at the 2010 St Henri - that seems to be getting a fair bit of praise.

Is it worth it though for $100..?

I haven't bought any Penfolds since the St Henri 2004 and Cellar Reserves in 2005. Both were reasonable QPR outside of Oz.

I'll try a Bin 9 if it reaches the UK -out of interest, and maybe cellar a few St Henri 2010 depending on the price. The rest ... unlikely at current prices.

The 10 St Henri and 12A and Yattarna Chardonnays are the wines that look interesting. But not at those prices - 30% lower and I might bite.

Wizz wrote:The 10 St Henri and 12A and Yattarna Chardonnays are the wines that look interesting. But not at those prices - 30% lower and I might bite.

This +1

If this is anything to go by -

http://www.ozwinereview.com/2014/02/pen ... redux.html

The Bin 9 would have to be a good drop for me to buy. There is a fair bit of wonderful Cabernet around the $ 30-ish mark.

LOL @ RRP $80 for the 407.... no chance

Im glad TWE is learning from their past mistakes though.........

Rossco wrote:The Bin 9 would have to be a good drop for me to buy. There is a fair bit of wonderful Cabernet around the $ 30-ish mark.

LOL @ RRP $80 for the 407.... no chance

Im glad TWE is learning from their past mistakes though.........

No chance at $62 either, once discounted by the chains.
407 for me along with the TH stuff just has no identity in the whole range and rather a sense of malaise....why do the even make it?

Could be tempted re Bin 8/9 that is around the traps in the mid $20s though
Hope someone in a shop gets confused and sells me a Bin 7 Kalimna?? for the same price.

Cheers Craig

Just tried most of them, maybe biased, but very unimpressed. All had been opened the previous day, and bottles were about half full. 389 was hollow and really quite crappy, 407 was just 9 with extra oak. 9 wasn't too bad, but should be $20, not $30. 128 wasn't as bad as some have said, but still very average. St Henri 2009 was also on tasting, ah, fruit at last! But still poor value.

Let's face it, we don't really expect prices to go down next year do we, just not going to happen....

Luckily there's so much other good stuff around!

The BIN 389 and St Henri used to be annual purchases for me but sadly I have stopped buying as the prices are now at a level where there is better value elsewhere.

It is interesting to see Penfolds introduce new labels into their range at a lower price. Seems similar to the strategy Wynns did with when they introduced their Green label at a price point below the Black label.

My 2c worth:
Was pleasantly suprised-
Bin 2: Slurpable, a good mid week quaffer, sweet, with a bit of body, drink now
Bin 28 - full bodied, good effort for a poor vintage, enjoyable not a long term prospect - med term, pronounced oak which is to be expected.
Bin 128- Med bodied, more spice and less oak than the 28, however not any better than the 28 even though from a better vintage, it depends what you prefer from your Shiraz - Barossa(although now SE Australia) compared to Coonawarra.
Bin 407- my least favourite, however I have never been a fan.(at over $60 ridiculous)
Bin 389 - Dense, powerful, pronounced tannins, good fruit and oak(similar to 28).
Did I buy any? - No : if the 28 & 128 were in the mid $20's I would.
Bin 389 - in the 40's - yes
However at the price point requested there are plenty of other options. Any other opinions?

Tell 'em they're dreamin'...
GG

Phil H wrote:My 2c worth:
Was pleasantly suprised-
Bin 389 - Dense, powerful, pronounced tannins, good fruit and oak(similar to 28).
Any other opinions?

TiggerK wrote:389 was hollow and really quite crappy

That we tasted different wines? Mine was a 2011, but had been opened 24 hrs....

Hi Tigger
Only opened for an hour and not decanted. I have tasted some high alcoholic wines (15.5%) with good first impressions however they fall over quickly. I believe the level was around 14.5%. I often wonder about bottle/batch variation. With the quantity that Penfolds produce- how can all the bottles taste the same?
The other possibility was that my taste buds were in a good place - looking for Australian Reds after the night before drinking a cheap Rioja. That's why I said I was pleasantly surprised, as after tasting previous Bin releases I was disappointed.
Any other opinions on the 389?

Phil H wrote:Any other opinions on the 389?

In between for me. Penfolds oak and tannin waistcoat. Decent fruit weight. Correct without real excitement. Best of the 11's.

To be contrary to other opinions I liked the 128 best (blueberries and cinnamon in a fresh, medium weight style) with the 138 and the Bin 2 both solid efforts. Didn't rate the 28 at all (hollow and astringent) and the 407 and 9 were both alright.

All tasted on Thursday - they opened them all for me so that is a large caveat. However no purchases will be made. 128/138 if they were cheap enough e.g. below $30 might just tempt me though...

EDIT: just looked at other thoughts on the 128. Wonder if I the lady poured me something else!

The one I'm the most disappointed in is the 150. They shouldn't have even made it in 2011, especially at close to $70, and especially after the 2010 vintage which is a great wine. It's so easy to lose faith in Penfolds when they raise prices like they have, and then present wines like this. I'm sure the hype around some of their other wines will cover it up and all will be forgiven.

G'day

A reality check. Pretty much all of the previous posts have been slamming the prices, and claiming there is so much better wine out there at better prices.

So why is Penfolds still in business? It cannot just be exports.

Cheers

Allan

Waiters Friend wrote:G'day

A reality check. Pretty much all of the previous posts have been slamming the prices, and claiming there is so much better wine out there at better prices.

So why is Penfolds still in business? It cannot just be exports.

Cheers

Allan

Treasury have a very, very enviable collection of BRANDS. You can't question the strong track record of: Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Seppelts, Lindemans, Wynns, etc. In some instances, these wines sell themselves based purely on the label (none moreso than Penfolds).

Many, many people buy Penfolds with no idea of what they taste like. It's like the ultimate "gift" wine that someone who knows nothing about wine gets for their friend/uncle who is "into" wine.

Retailers get their allocation of Penfolds wines often before they've even tasted them, so whether they turn out to be fantastic or not, they're in the shop and must be sold.

I can think of no better MARKETED brand than Penfolds. There is no other wine brand in Australia that can generate anywhere near the same level of hype, regardless of the quality of the wines.

Waiters Friend wrote:G'day

A reality check. Pretty much all of the previous posts have been slamming the prices, and claiming there is so much better wine out there at better prices.

So why is Penfolds still in business? It cannot just be exports.

Cheers

Allan

Firstly, you're aware of the squillions of dollars Treasury are hemorrhaging. They're still in business but won't be if they continue down the current path. Secondly, there clearly are better wines out there at better prices. Are you arguing otherwise? Is the only reason (if the first point weren't true) that they are still in business is because they offer the best QPR?

I just bought some really good reds direct from a winery in Barossa, and the 2010 was the same price as the 2006.
Not everyone has to been greedy, to pay multimillion dollar salaries to CEOs in public companies.

I frequent an aviation/travel related web forum. A well known airline has a online liquor arm that often offers bonus points for purchases. Plenty of people on this forum who aren't wine nuts were buying up big on the Penfolds Bin releases. So yes...seems like no problem selling the merchandise.

cuttlefish wrote:

Waiters Friend wrote:G'day

A reality check. Pretty much all of the previous posts have been slamming the prices, and claiming there is so much better wine out there at better prices.

So why is Penfolds still in business? It cannot just be exports.

Cheers

Allan

Treasury have a very, very enviable collection of BRANDS. You can't question the strong track record of: Penfolds, Wolf Blass, Seppelts, Lindemans, Wynns, etc. In some instances, these wines sell themselves based purely on the label (none moreso than Penfolds).

Many, many people buy Penfolds with no idea of what they taste like. It's like the ultimate "gift" wine that someone who knows nothing about wine gets for their friend/uncle who is "into" wine.

Retailers get their allocation of Penfolds wines often before they've even tasted them, so whether they turn out to be fantastic or not, they're in the shop and must be sold.

I can think of no better MARKETED brand than Penfolds. There is no other wine brand in Australia that can generate anywhere near the same level of hype, regardless of the quality of the wines.

Thanks Cuttlefish, for my reality check. You are perfectly correct. Penfolds is VERY well marketed, and holds a niche position in the 'luxury goods' market. This makes the value for money argument redundant.

Thanks

Allan

A navel gazing thought on the Penfolds marketing strategy.

i saw an observation this week that last years releases are still available, and at lower prices than the headline prices for this years new wines.

Makes me wonder if Penfolds is deliberately pushing the new release price up, to cream the high margins that come from early buyers - corporate gifts, the less well informed, etc. Knowing full well that "normal" margins return some months after release when the wines settle back to a more market determined, street price - when volumes will start to move.

That cant be the whole story, it doesn't explain the ill will they generate with the strategy.

I also commented on Winefront the other day that I cant reconcile paying thsi money for Penfolds new releases, when Treasury also puts out the new release Seppelts St Peters at $70 - a vastly more interesting wine at that price (and will probably head down towards $50 in time)

cheers

Andrew

Curious - I notice there is NO Bin 389 in the current Langtons catalog?

why bother! so many others brands available at much better quality and value, Penny's time has been long gone!
from the past Still have plenty Bin 389- 90,98,02,05,06,10
Bin 407, 98,05,10
st henri, 91, 96,98,99,02,04,
rwt 97,98,01,02,
Bin 707, 86,87,88,90,92,93,94,96,98,02
Cheers
Boyeah

Sorry to drag up an old thread (or open old wounds). I bought four of the 138 and a couple of Bin 9s. There are a lot of worse Cabernets out there for 30 bucks (and some better ones obviously).

My note for the Bin 138 SGM:
8/03/2014 Deep, dark and bright. Great nose of dark musk, floral notes and cardamon. Savoury fruit somewhat overpowered by the acid and the tannin. Plenty to like here. Very Penfolds and very Barossa GSM. Milk chocolate on the nose later and coffee grounds. The finish is moreish. There is licorice. The tannin works. The wine overall is lovely and I suspect will get better with age. On the second night the acid has settled down. Nice mouthfeel abd blackberry joins the fruit flavours.

Cellartracker asks for a score so I gave it 91, but I would rate it at Very, Very Good. True, QPR is not excellent but a nice wine.

Cheers

Michael

Michael McNally wrote:Cellartracker asks for a score

This field isn't mandatory.

camw wrote:

Michael McNally wrote:Cellartracker asks for a score

This field isn't mandatory.

Ha!