2019 Penley Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Phoenix

Penley

Our wine-making history dates back to 1844, but it really began with a red sports car in 1945. It was a collision of hearts and minds, a collision that had been 100 years in the making – refined and distilled from two pioneering winemaking families.

When Reginald Lester Tolley rolled up to a function in his red sports car, Judith Anne Penfold Hyland was suitably impressed by the car and rather taken by the man behind the wheel. Sparks flew, romance blossomed and Penley was conceived (as a business name) in 1947 after Reginald and Judith married.

However, it wasn’t until 1988 that the Penley name came to life, that it finally bore fruit, so to speak. That’s when we (the children of Reginald and Judith) decided to create our own wines – put our label on tradition. We bought a plot of land in Coonawarra, planted cabernet grapes and called it Penley Estate. In 1989, our Phoenix Cabernet won a Gold Medal at the Adelaide Wine Show. As you can imagine, we were pretty pleased with that achievement.

In 1995, we built a winery at Penley Estate – a full on, all the bells and whistles, impress me with your red sports car winery. Our reputation had grown by then, and it made sense to have everything on site. We planted more vineyards, added some Shiraz to the Cabernet, and increased our range of wine, producing classic Coonawarra reds that were full-bodied, to be kept and savoured.