Penfolds - Bin A Chardonnay 2023

Decanter Magazine

Having asserted its lean, flinty style as a pronounced signature – with sharp, struck-match sulphides arresting the nose and a sharply defined lean fruit profile – the winemakers have now wound back its overt characters. The aromas now come alive with a whole orchard of citrus blossoms, while the palate is almost coy in its wake, though still boasts shades of bright lemon and grapefruit. Pure and confident, it’s a clever refinement of previous vintages for this distinctive model.

Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2023 Reserve Bin A Chardonnay is aromatically tight and ungiving—far less reductive, toasty and expressive than previous releases of this great wine. Perhaps it is still suffering from its recent bottling? On the palate, this is toasty and concentrated and yet still closed. The citrus flow of flavor intersects with the tight acidity, and this reveals the Adelaide Hills origin. While there is density here, it remains structurally quite fine and firm. It matured for seven months in French barriques, 60% new and 30% one year old. It was bottled with 12.5% alcohol, a pH of 3.07 and 6.7 grams per liter of total acidity, sealed under screw cap. If I were to open a bottle of this, I might like to wait until the fourth quarter of 2024. Give it every chance—I love this wine, and it ages gracefully. I look forward to doing just that.

Gismondi on Wine

This is all Adelaide Hills, and it is the most expressive chardonnay in the current Penfolds lineup. It is the product of wild yeast, and inoculation fermented in new and seasoned French oak barriques. It all goes through malolactic fermentation, upping its texture and richness, and spends eight months in 75 percent new French oak barriques to cement the style. The nose is a compelling mix of citrus notes bolstered by a stony mineral underside and a nutty oatmeal honey finish with plenty of acid to please the sniffers. It's big and bold, but if it makes any sense with details and that Penfolds restraint and polish. A perfect wine for lobster or richer seafood dishes. (Anthony Gismondi).

Ray Jordan

Tyson Stelzer

Campbell Mattinson, The Wine front

Ken Gargett