FORTIFIED WINES

Penfolds began making fortified wines as early as the 1850s. By the time of Australia s Federation (in 1901) Penfolds was producing one-third of Australia s wines, and by the end of World War I it was one of the country s leading producers of Port and Sherry -style wines. Penfolds early fortified wines were blended by Alf Vesey, a stalwart of 69 vintages, who worked directly for Mary Penfold and trained Max Schubert as his understudy during the late 1930s.

By the 1920s, Penfolds expanded its winery footprint in the Barossa Valley and Murrumbidgee areas, and Penfolds Royal Reserve Port was a prominent brand in the Australian market. In 1945, Penfolds purchased the important 19th-century Kalimna Vineyard in Barossa Valley. Although Kalimna is better known as the mother vineyard of Penfolds Grange and for its 1880s planted Block 42 cabernet sauvignon vines, the property also accommodates extensive fortified maturation cellars adjacent to the historic remains of the c. 1890 winery. In keeping with international trade agreements Penfolds uses the description Tawny, rather than Tawny Port, to describe its blended oak-matured fortified red wines which take on a tawny colour with age.

The distinctive Penfolds Tawny House Style is connected to long established relationships and time-honoured production methods. Many grape growing families have collaborated and supplied fruit to Penfolds for generations. Traditional vinification methods have been refined and improved from one generation to another. The addition of low-strength, full-flavoured fortifying grape spirit is an essential element because it must integrate and remain in balance with the wine over the span of its life. The stacks of oak barrels, filled and racked over the seasons, also bring an underlying and consistent maturation character across the range.

Penfolds Tawny styles are historically based on Barossa Valley and Riverland fruit primar ly shiraz, mataro and small percentages of cabernet sauvignon and grenache. Other legacy material, including Portuguese grape varieties, may be included.

Penfolds fortified wines retain the

distinctive DNA of the original style,

though we are continually and sympathetically

evolving.

JAMES GODFREY, Global Fortified and Spirit

Winemaker

After vinification and fortification, the tawnies are aged primarily in 300-litre seasoned oak hogsheads with enough headspace for the wine to expand in summer months. The cyclic swings in temperatures are vital to the maturation process which incorporates evaporation, concentration and controlled oxidation. Some tawny components are barrel-aged for three years and others for as long as 50 years (or more) as reserve blending stock. The density and weight of each barrel-aged tawny is proportionate to the evaporation effect also known as the Angel s Share .

Rigorous judgement and attention to detail are the fortified winemaker s skill. Continuity and consistency of style are achieved through drawing off multiple vintages from barrels in exacting proportions. The rarer Grandfather Tawnies benefit from a fractional blending system, or solera, which allows a much longer maturation time and promotes extraordinary evenness and complexity of style.

Minimum average blended age is the way each tawny is descr bed. A 50-Year-Old Tawny will have more richness, weight and complexity than a Ten-Year-Old Tawny. Penfolds Club and Club Reserves are much finer and fruit rich than the solera-aged Grandfathers. These differences are categorised by an Australian Wine Industry Classification which describe four step levels of quality (Australian, Classic, Grand and Rare) based on minimum average age and character of the wine. Nonetheless Penfolds Tawnies share a common theme of freshness, authenticity and full-bodied flavours.

Penfolds Tawny styles are ready to drink when released. The wines are at the peak of freshness, complexity and balance for the first three or four years after bottling. Although the bottles will keep for years, there is no great advantage to cellaring them for an extended period. That s because the wines have already been matured for a long time and blended to exacting standards at the time of release. However, the rarest or limited-release bottlings may become collectibles or keepsakes because of their storied history.

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