| Australian | 2704 |
| Italian | 1146 |
| Imported | 619 |
| Burgundy | 580 |
| Bordeaux | 379 |
| Champagne | 334 |
| New Zealand | 269 |
| Rhone | 241 |
| Chablis | 167 |
| Sauternes / Barsac | 166 |
| France | 154 |
| Port | 73 |
| Spirits | 59 |
| Whisky | 54 |
| Total Lots: | 6945 |
| PENFOLDS Claret Limited Edition | 2009 |
| ST HALLETT Old Block | 1993 |
| TENUTA DELL ORNELLAIA Le Serre N... | 2019 |
| TENUTA DELL ORNELLAIA Le Serre N... | 2019 |
| PENFOLDS Grange | 1994 |
| ST HALLETT Old Block | 1993 |
| TORBRECK The Celts | 2009 |
| AURELIO SETTIMO Rocche dell'Annu... | 2016 |
| AURELIO SETTIMO Rocche dell'Annu... | 2016 |
| NIKKA Taketsuru 12 Year Old | NV |
| PENFOLDS Grange |
| HENSCHKE Hill of Grace |
Here is a list of some of the birth year wine lots in the current auction catalogue. Search for any birth year by using the 'search' button on the tool bar above the current auction page on the Sterling web site. If you have and trouble finding the vintage you need give Sterling a call on 1800 800 959 and we will try our best to track an example down.
PENFOLDS Grange Hermitage Shiraz 1955MOST DECORATED - PENFOLDS FIVE STAR - Bin 95 - Rewards of Patience - Drink now. Medium crimson. Fresh and mature with parsnip, aniseed and slightly soupy miso and demi-glace notes with a touch of crushed ant. Developed gamey, roasted walnut, roasted parsnip, dark chocolate and leathery flavours, with fine loose-knit/sinewy tannins and long fresh acidity. Some dried roses and vellum notes. Still holding, but rare. 90 percent shiraz and 10 percent cabernet sauvignon. Magill Estate and Morphett Vale (Adelaide), Kalimna Vineyard (Barossa Valley) and McLaren Vale. The most decorated Grange – winner of 12 trophies and 52 gold medals during its relatively short career on the Australian wine show circuit. Spent only nine months in oak. Named by US magazine Wine Spectator as one of 12 “Wines of the Millennium” in 2000. Bin 95 is the most common bottling and commercially available. Also released as Bins 13, 14, 53, 54 and 148A. “Still showing some cut flowers, mocha and sweet fruits but not a great bottle despite its fame and history.” (JH) shoulders, expansive tannins and slightly menacing snarl despite its flagging energy.” (NR)
| NIK 0555 | 1 BOTTLE Penfolds Red Wine Clinic 2018, slight label damage | Current Bid: $8000 |
BIG BIRTHDAY TREAT
| MIK 1114 | 1 BOTTLE Cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $272 |
CLINIC CERTIFICATION - Buy with confidence
| NIK 0146 | 1 BOTTLE Penfolds Red Wine 2010 Clinic & cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $560 | |
| NIK 0147 | 1 BOTTLE Very high shoulder, cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $480 |
AUSTIN A55? - Ask Ford Prefect
| NIK 0181 | 1 BOTTLE Level down approx. 4cm to 5cm & label damage | Current Bid: $360 |
CLINIC CERTIFICATION - Buy with confidence PENFOLDS FOUR STAR - Rewards of Patience - Drink Soon. Medium-deep brick crimson. Intense roasted walnut panforte and hazelnut aromas with apricot, stone fruit, cedar and floral notes. Generous developed panforte and apricot flavours, sweet and plentiful tannins and underlying roasted walnut, grilled nut, vanilla oak complexity with integrated acidity. Finishes slightly leathery but chalky firm with attractive espresso and ground coffee notes. Just past its peak of development, although the elements are still aligned. Rare. 95 percent shiraz, 5 percent cabernet sauvignon. Kalimna Vineyard (Barossa Valley), Barossa Valley, Magill Estate and Morphett Vale (Adelaide), McLaren Vale. Jimmy Watson Trophy Winner. Released as Bin 95 (also as Bins 69, 70 and 71). “Dried leaves, faded roses, liquorice and ecclesiastical smoke. Muscular firm in structure with the fruit fading away.” (NR) “Spice box, cedar and sandalwood. Tertiary on entry but the finish still carries delicate sweet fruit. Graceful and elegant.” (FW)
BIG BIRTHDAY TREAT
| MIK 1113 | 1 BOTTLE Cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $232 |
| NIK 0480 | 1 BOTTLE High shoulder & cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $48 |
CLINIC CERTIFICATION - Buy with confidence - PENFOLDS FOUR STAR - Rewards of Patience - Drink Soon. A sturdy Grange with surprising richness and muscular frame. Barnyard notes are now beginning to dominate but some good bottles around. 90 percent shiraz, 10 percent cabernet sauvignon. Kalimna Vineyard (Barossa Valley), Barossa Valley and Coonawarra.
CLINIC CERTIFICATION - Buy with confidence
| NIK 0581 | 1 BOTTLE Mid shoulder, label damage, signs of past leaking | Current Bid: $208 |
| NIK 0391 | 1 BOTTLE Very high shoulder, cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $130 | |
| NIK 0583 | 1 BOTTLE High shoulder, label damage | Current Bid: $128 |
| NIK 0576 | 1 BOTTLE Very high shoulder, cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $400 |
PERFECT 40 Birthday pressie - CLINIC CERTIFICATION - Buy with confidence
| NIK 0579 | 1 BOTTLE Penfolds Red Wine Clinic 2014 | Current Bid: $960 | |
| NIK 0580 | 1 BOTTLE Penfolds Red Wine Clinic 2004, slight label damage | Current Bid: $960 |
| NIK 0584 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $120 | |
| NIK 0585 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $120 |
GUARANTEED 30YO - JH95 - Strong purple-red; a complex array of aromas running through dark fruits, mint and vanilla, with the oak well balanced and integrated. A beautifully balanced and constructed wine, with intense fruit, well integrated oak and guaranteed to evolve superbly over the decades.
| NIK 0575 | 1 BOTTLE Cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $120 |
| MAL 0014 | 1 BOTTLE Very high shoulder | Current Bid: $5 |
INTENSE NOTES - RP95 - The 1995 Léoville Las Cases is a blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc. Medium garnet colored with a touch of brick, it needs a fair bit of swirling to unlock the intense notes of baked plums, dried mulberries and boysenberry preserves with hints of black truffles, Chinese five spice, unsmoked cigars and dusty soil, plus wafts of beef drippings and cast-iron pan. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers good weight and generous fruit, supported by plush tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with loads of earth, sautéed herbs and mineral-inspired flavors.
| 106 0957 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $400 |
| MUL 2138 | 1 BOTTLE Ex-cellar | Current Bid: $92 | |
| MUL 2140 | 1 BOTTLE Ex-cellar | Current Bid: $92 | |
| MUL 2139 | 1 BOTTLE Ex-cellar | Current Bid: $92 |
| WAY 0264 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $60 | |
| WAY 0263 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $60 | |
| WAY 0262 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $60 | |
| WAY 0261 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $60 | |
| WAY 0260 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $60 | |
| WAY 0259 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $60 |
POWERHOUSE - JH96 - A veritable powerhouse, as the wine usually is. This is deadly serious cabernet sauvignon, like a knight in full-body armour. Inside there is a wealth of blackcurrant/ blackberry fruit, and tannins as a second line of defence. When and how to attack is the question. Two Trophies and Four Gold Medals
| JOH 0047 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $40 | |
| JOH 0048 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $40 | |
| JOH 0049 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $40 | |
| JOH 0050 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $40 |
BEAUTIFUL - JH96 - Deep purple; a beautiful wine in every respect; purity of classic varietal fruit; texture, structure and length all perfect; fine tannins and integrated oak. Cabernet Malbec. Six Trophies
| XWA 2252 | 1 MAGNUM Ex-cellar | Current Bid: $97 | |
| XWA 2253 | 1 MAGNUM Ex-cellar | Current Bid: $97 | |
| XWA 2254 | 1 MAGNUM Ex-cellar | Current Bid: $96 |
STAR FLEET COMMAND - Mission Moss Wood, boldly going were no Wine Fam has been before - BIG THING MAGESTIC MONUMENT - House Score 9/10 - JH95 - Classic, austere regional/varietal expression; curiously, the grip is more evident on entry than on the finish and aftertaste, thanks to superfine tannins. NB 6l Imperial - Freight restrictions
| PMU 0019 | 1 IMPERIAL Ex-cellar - Freight only to buyers in Western AustraliaEx-cellar | Current Bid: $3528 |
VERY RARE - VERY SPECIAL - RP99+ - The release of the 2004 Bin 60A following the epic 1962 Bin 60A is old news now, but the wine was looking very fine indeed when I tasted it so I thought I’d add a note. Blended of 56% Coonawarra Cabernet from Block 20 and 44% Barossa Shiraz from Koonunga Hill Block 56G and Kalimna Blocks 4 and 14, the wine was matured in 100% new American oak hogsheads for 13 months. Very deep purple-black in color, it offers restrained notes of game, smoked meat, earth, blackberry and black currant liqueurs, yeast, marmite-toast plus whiffs of dried lavender, cedar and bark. Very crisp, very tight and very firm, this taut medium-bodied wine is still all structure at this stage, going very long and earthy in the finish. Give it time and consider broaching it from 2014. It should drink well into the 2030s if not beyond. With a lot of changes happening around the Foster’s Group, it is business as usual at Penfolds…which seems to operate within its own world. But this is no small world. The vineyard holdings here are vast and the connections with growers go back generations. Chief winemaker Peter Gago is the very well spoken front-man for the production team backed-up Kym Schroeter in charge of the whites and Steve Lienert crafting some very fine, consistent and sometimes inspired reds. If Champagne is all about the art of blending, then Penfolds is the Champagne of Australian wine. Those that think large companies producing wines that emphasize blending can’t make great wines need to think about the Champagne model or simply try some of Penfolds top wines to become believers. That said – check out their recent single vineyard release: the very special 2004 Block 42 Kalimna Cabernet Sauvignon, the first release of a wine made purely from this 100+ year old single block (perhaps the oldest block of Cabernet in the world?) since 1996.
FABULOUS - RP97 - It’s not known exactly when the Kalimna Block 42 was planted but there are suggestions that the vines existed during the latter part of the 19th Century. They could be the oldest Cabernet vines in the world, although the famous Metala Cabernet vineyard in Langhorne Creek was known to have been planted in 1891 so could very well pre-date Kalimna. Regardless, I’ve been there and the vines are truly old. Only very rarely does Penfolds release this as a single vineyard wine, when the Cabernet is so fabulous it can’t possibly be blended. The 2004 Block 42 Kalimna Cabernet Sauvignon was such a vintage. Matured in 100% new American hogsheads for 13 months, it displays a very deep garnet-purple color and profoundly earthy / gamey aromas over black cherry preserves, creme de cassis plus scents of leather, pencil shavings, Mediterranean herbs, black truffles, underbrush and black olives. The elegant, medium-bodied palate is tightly-knit and led by structure with a high level of grainy tannins, very high acid and a long earthy finish. Approachable now, it should continue to evolve and drink to 2025+.
| JOE 0016 | 1 BOTTLE Cellar damaged label | Current Bid: $440 | |
| WAY 0082 | 1 BOTTLE BOXED | Current Bid: $460 |
PENFOLDS FIVE STAR - Rewards of Patience - Drink now to 2035 Medium-deep crimson. Attractive dark cherry, plum and praline aromas with hint of tar. Plush and concentrated with dark cherry, plum, blackberry, rich dark chocolate and tarry flavours, fine-dense satin tannins and underlying roasted chestnut and vanilla oak. Chalky dry finish with attractive mineral length. “Fresh black fruits progressively unfurl their sails. A powerfully complete wine.” (JH) “A gorgeous wine with beautiful dark fruits and polished velvety tannins.” (JR)
BEAUTIFUL - JH96 - A beautiful wine, intriguingly more elegant than the Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot LTCf, with a silky fragrance and mouthfeel, the accent on a rainbow of red fruits, the tannins exceptionally fine.
| WAY 0239 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $58 | |
| WAY 0240 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $58 | |
| WAY 0238 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $58 | |
| WAY 0237 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $58 | |
| WAY 0234 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $58 | |
| WAY 0235 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $58 |
PERFECTLY - JH96 - Deep colour; a powerful bouquet and even more powerful palate, with layers of blackcurrant and cassis seamlessly interwoven with spicy/mocha oak, tannins strong but perfectly balanced; very good mouthfeel.
| WAY 0529 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $34 | |
| WAY 0530 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $34 |
FRUIT WILL WIN - JH94 - Extremely powerful, with layers of black fruits sandwiched between layers of tannin and French oak; the fruit will win out, but take 10 years to do so.
| WAY 0576 | 1 BOTTLE Slight label damage | Current Bid: $65 | |
| WAY 0577 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $72 | |
| WAY 0578 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $72 | |
| WAY 0579 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $72 |
| ACC 16562 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $94 | |
| ACC 16563 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $94 |
OUTSTANDING - RP90 - While La Mission Haut-Brion’s 2004 is not one of this estate’s top successes, it is an outstanding wine, no doubt because of this extraordinary terroir. Deep ruby/purple with notes of lead pencil shavings intermixed with black cherries, cassis, and a hint of scorched earth, medium body, sweet tannin, and a good, but uninspiring finish, this attractive, mid-weight La Mission should age nicely for 15 or more years.
| EIO 0237 | 1 BOTTLE | Current Bid: $328 |
The Grange Market