Blessing or sacrilege? Angel or monster? Wine supplier Treasury Wine Estates has blended three vintages of its iconic Penfolds Grange shiraz to create a rare and pricey conglomerate: Penfolds g3.
It is the first time Penfolds has created a blended Grange, using wine from the 2008, 2012 and 2014 vintages.
Only 1,200 bottles of Penfolds g3 will be available worldwide, a scarcity that is reflected in the $3,000 price tag for each 750ml bottle.
Some lucky wine enthusiasts were treated to the only pouring of g3 at the Liang Yi private museum in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong on Wednesday night.
Penfolds chief winemaker Peter Gago says the g3 is a natural result of the venerated art of blending.
"It wasn't about selecting the biggest or the best Grange vintages," Mr Gago said.
"It was about making something different, but not just to be different."
Penfolds says each vintage selected for the blend brings something different to the final product: the 2008 is big and bold; the 2012 is elegant and sophisticated; and the 2014, which is yet to be released on its own, is young and fresh.
Treasury Wine Estates chief marketing officer Simon Marton said Penfolds will not be releasing a blended Grange every year, but may consider doing it again if the right wines are available and the end result fits with the elevated status of Grange.
"There's always an interest from collectors and consumers of Penfolds around the world for these experimental, new innovations from Penfolds, and I think it's going to be a big success," he said.
With so few bottles available, tastings of g3 had been extremely limited, even among the Penfolds winemakers, Mr Marton said.
"I've been led to believe that it is quite unique," he said of the taste.
The g3 will only be available by application and through Penfolds' cellar doors in the Barossa Valley and at Magill Estate in South Australia.
