2017 Penfolds Wines Bin 389 Cabernet-Shiraz South Australia 750 ml

Penfolds Bin 389 is known the world over as “Baby Grange,” and the 97-point 2017 shows why this Cabernet-Shiraz blend more than deserves the comparison to its iconic $850 sibling. It’s a concentrated tour de force, dominated by dense black fruits and cassis, and accented with raw chocolate, licorice, mint, and cedar. Structured by fine tannins and dripping with the DNA that made Penfolds Grange one of the world’s unquestioned greats, Bin 389 has become Australia’s most collected wine—bumping its big brother from the top spot!

Here’s the surest way to tell the two wines apart: Bin 389 carries a mere $80 SRP—and today on Wine Access, we’ve got it for 33% off of that. It’s a no-brainer cellar pickup for any red wine lover who wants first-class quality, and doesn’t mind claiming it at a super-sharp price. 

By any measure, “Baby Grange” is much more than a catchy moniker for Bin 389. The infinitely more affordable red has kept pace with its flagship’s record of outstanding consistency, earning scores of 96, 97, 96, and 97 points over the last four vintages from eminent Australian critic James Halliday. He even singled out today’s 2017 as a special value, making it one of the smartest buys any red wine collector could make for the money. 

Bin 389 was created by the legendary Penfolds winemaker Max Schubert in 1960, the same year he officially resumed making his beloved Grange (which he’d been making in secret since the Penfolds board ordered him to stop). From then on, Bin 389 and Grange came up together, sharing sources and techniques. They’re both multi-regional blends using grapes from Penfolds’ top sources in McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, and Wrattonbully (Bin 389 also uses Padthaway fruit). Grange is matured for 20 months in American oak hogsheads, while Bin 389 matures for 12 months—in 29% new barrels, as well as ones recently emptied of Grange. 

While Grange is dominated by Shiraz and supplemented with a small percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon, Bin 389 is roughly even: 54% Cabernet and 46% Shiraz in 2017. This makes for a beautiful mélange of black fruits, raw chocolate, and mint from the Cabernet Sauvignon harmonizing with Shiraz’s dense blue fruits and spice. 

Bin 389 boasts Penfolds’ incomparable DNA at a fraction of the price of their marquee wine—no wonder it has become the most collected wine in Australia, and has even inspired counterfeits in certain markets. But with our perfect provenance guarantee, you don’t have to give that a thought. You can just stock it in your cellar and indulge in one of the great collectible wines in the world.