Origin: Australia
South Australia
Alcohol content: 14,5% vol
Winery information:
Penfolds was founded in 1844 by Christopher Rawson and is now Australia's best-known winery. The company is made up of two wineries in South Australia: the first and historic winery where the first wines were made is in Aberdeen.delaida, and the main one is currently in Barossa Valley.
Christopher Rawson, of British origin, was a doctor by profession. When he created the first winery, he worked with vines brought from Europe and made fortified wines to use as medicine. The evolution of this winery over time led it to change these Sherry and Port-type wines that made them famous, to create a wide range of wines that currently includes the most prestigious and reputable wine on the southern continent and among the most recognized. del planet, the Grange.
After Christopher Rawson, four technical directors have headed the winery: Max Schubert, Don Ditter, John Duval and currently Peter Gago. A generational succession of three winemakers who have always followed the same guidelines. Max Schubert was a visionary who marked a line of work and way of understanding wines. His philosophy, also maintained by Ditter and Duval, would end up having a great influence on the evolution of wines in Australia. Research and experimentation led him to create the two greatest Penfolds wines, Grange and Bin 707. Today, Peter Gago, maintaining the philosophy created by Schubert, is the person in charge of all the wines.
Penfolds has amazing potential in hectares of vineyards cultivated on their own and spread across different areas of South Australia. Barossa Valley is a vast expanse of gently rolling hills, where Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz adapt perfectly. Coonawarra is characterised by homogeneous chocolate-coloured soil on a limestone base. McLaren Vale is in an area with little rainfall - 420 mm - with gentle hills of clay soil ideal for growing Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz. Clare Valley is a collection of different soils with different colours and textures, where they plant Chardonnay, Riesling, Merlot, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon. In Eden Valley and Adelaide Hills also have vineyards. Despite the large number of vineyards owned, they also buy grapes from growers whom they advise in Padthaway, 100km north of Coonawarra. Most of their wines are made from a blend of grapes from different areas.
