2019 Dourthe II Cabernet Shiraz Merlot

Dourthe II stands for two hemispheres, two wineries, two cultures, two worlds (new and old). The 2019 Dourthe II is a blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Shiraz (from South Australia) and 12% Merlot and was bottled in Australia due to the Australian fruit component. Penfolds has a disruptive streak that is clear—bottling wine in other countries, taking the iconic and idiosyncratic Australian blend (Cabernet/Shiraz) to foreign shores and back again... Here, the American oak emerges through the finish and provides a familiarity in the context of Penfolds—it grounds it. The tannic structure is fine and tightly knit; the fruit speaks of cassis, blueberries, graphite, black olive, licorice and star anise, and there's an injection of tobacco leaf and cigar box too... a melding of two worlds. It seems to me that this wine still has a way to go; combining Australian Shiraz and Bordeaux Cabernet Sauvignon (and Merlot) creates something of a stylistic clash in the wine, but the construction—the winemaking—knits it all back together. We know nothing about how this wine will age, but all the components—regional and winemaking—suggest a comfortable couple of decades.

- Erin Larkin (2022)