Penfolds FWT 585 Cabernet Merot Petit Verdot 2022 with Gift Box

The French Winemaking Trials (FWT) series represents one of Penfolds' most deliberate transgressions: a house built on American oak and Shiraz supremacy turning its multi-regional blending intellect toward Bordeaux varieties and French oak discipline. FWT 585 is a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petit Verdot blend drawing on Barossa Valley fruit — anchored by Kalimna's ancient, deep alluvial and sandy loam soils, phylloxera-free and among the oldest continuously-farmed red-wine country in Australia. These free-draining soils concentrate berry flavour while moderating vine vigour, producing small-berried fruit with natural structural density. Winemaking follows Penfolds' signature approach of acclimatised pure yeast cultures and temperature-controlled fermentation — a legacy of Ray Beckwith's pH-meter innovations — with maturation in French oak, departing from the American hogshead regime that defines Grange and Bin 389. The inclusion of Petit Verdot is the structural signature here: a variety rarely bottled at this price point in Australia, it deepens colour, lifts mid-palate density, and extends the tannin frame beyond what Cabernet alone delivers. The 2022 vintage in Barossa delivered moderate temperatures and well-distributed rainfall, producing fruit with natural freshness alongside the valley's characteristic generosity — a drinking window that opens earlier than the flagship Bins while retaining Penfolds' house architecture.