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Second vintage of Grange La Chapelle released – our expert gives their verdict
Two icons of the wine world have joined forces once more to create an appellation-defying blend of Rhône Syrah and Australian Shiraz. David Sly reports, with a stellar score for the new 2022 vintage.
Peter Gago, chief winemaker at Penfolds, leaves none of his winemaking dreams unfulfilled. His ambition to always have Penfolds’ elite Grange Shiraz in the thick of conversations about the world’s great wines has been elevated to new heights with a second vintage release of Grange La Chapelle.
Gago’s dream of combining Grange, a signature of southern hemisphere Shiraz, with La Chapelle, a monarch of the Rhône, in a single wine became a reality in early 2021.
A cheeky question directed to long-time friend Caroline Frey, then head winemaker at Domaine de la Chapelle, led to serious discussions about a viable collaboration.
The initial release of Grange La Chapelle 2021 in 2025 – an audacious French and Australian wine affair – caused shockwaves. The latest release shows serious continued intent for this star-aligned blend.
‘By uniting two iconic wines, this collaboration achieves something truly groundbreaking. As a vine grower, as a winemaker, it’s so magical, I would have never even dared to imagine it,’ commented Frey.
‘No-one in the world has ever blended two such legendary terroirs. It’s like Picasso and Dalí painting on the same canvas – an idea so extraordinary it almost feels too incredible to be real.’
Caroline Frey and Peter Gago on the Hill of Hermitage, Rhône
(Image credit: Credit Unknown)
Shiraz under the spotlight
When Penfolds winemaker Max Schubert created Grange in 1951, he made no secret of his admiration for and the inspiration provided by the great La Chapelle wines. He named his initial vintages ‘Grange Hermitage’ as a tribute – until French legal intervention saw the term removed from the Grange label in 1990.
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Schubert’s vision to realise the most powerful, elegant and long-lived expression of Shiraz from Australian vineyards has remained a constant through a succession of Grange winemakers.
Now Gago’s responsibility, he wants to take assertive action as Shiraz appears to be drifting away from the nucleus of elite wine analysis. He believes that combining the most recent vintages of Grange with La Chapelle in a superstar blend offers a platform for more serious and focused conversations about Shiraz among the world’s wine connoisseurs.
Indeed, the new blend provides a delicious glimpse into the future – as the 2022 Grange is not due to be released to the market until later in 2026, although Gago is quick to note that the dual-hemisphere blend is entirely different in character, flavour and style to the 2022 Grange.
‘This collaboration between two great wineries is the grand world Shiraz advertisement, and I believe it will create significant conversations across the world,’ said Gago.
(Image credit: Penfolds)
Going beyond
Grange La Chapelle 2022 is a blend of 50% La Chapelle from the steep hill of Hermitage in the Northern Rhône Valley, and 50% Grange from selected South Australian old-vine vineyards in the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Coonawarra.
The topography of these sites is vastly different, as are the winemaking styles of the two contributing producers – particularly their oak regime. Grange is matured in 100% new American oak; La Chapelle has only 15% new French oak.
Combining two such assertive and distinctive wines may seem counterintuitive – with Grange promoting itself as the great multi-regional blend of Australian Shiraz, and La Chapelle being a definitive single-site Syrah. But Gago reasons that a blend can take the expression further ‘into uncharted territory’.
The idea may smack of a gimmick, with a keen eye on marketing – but the wine in the bottle is unmistakably profound.
What started as a trial between the two producers in 2021 has now become an extended series of wines – with the 2022 now released, plus 2023 and 2024 vintage blends in bottle.
As for the future, Gago simply quipped: ‘Well, after all this, perhaps anything is possible.’
This limited release will retail at €2,600 and AU$3,500 per bottle. A small allocation will be sold by Penfolds direct to consumer channel in Australia and the US. Buyers can express interest on a dedicated website: grangexlachapelle.com
Penfolds, Grange La Chapelle, Wine of the World, 2022
My wines
There is greatness in the pedigree of the two producers, each providing 50% to this two-hemisphere Shiraz blend. But there is also justified excitement surrounding...
After 30 years in journalism, Australian freelance writer, author and editor David Sly has been fortunate enough to indulge his passions in print. Based in Adelaide, South Australia, David has moved from newspapers to specialise in food and wine writing, being published in national and international magazines, from Gourmet Traveller to Decanter, and is Food & Wine Editor of SA Life magazine. He has focused intently on the specialised regional produce and wines of South Australia, winning national awards, and is a graduate of the University of Adelaide/ Le Cordon Bleu Gastronomy course.
