Screwcap watch - big $ sighting

Penfolds - the red wine giant - has released the 2004 RWT Shiraz, a Barossa top-of-the-range effort (second only to Grange in the hierarchy), with a local market release price of A$150, under screwcap. It crowns a number of wines in the over-$100 market thus sealed. I keep hearing rumours of Henschke doing a part-bottling of Hill of Grace too (A$400-ish) but haven't seen proof yet.
cheers,
Graeme

Best that I have seen is still Gunderloch TBA - $450+ AUD for a half bottle under screwcap.

HOG at $400! Don't think I will have the pleasure any time soon!

[Jenise]

RWT is a $150 wine down there? I'm quite surprised--not based on taste or anything, but on American prices. It's half that here, I believe.

Jenise
Yes, not quite half that here, but hovering at £40. I have six of the 99 vintage that I bought at £25 a bottle.
Good old WET (Wine Equalisation Tax)

At least I no longer drool at the prices when in Oz, so buys are always based on wanting the wine, not liking the price.

regards

Ian

[Jenise]

Jenise
Yes, not quite half that here, but hovering at £40. I have six of the 99 vintage that I bought at £25 a bottle.
Good old WET (Wine Equalisation Tax)

At least I no longer drool at the prices when in Oz, so buys are always based on wanting the wine, not liking the price.

regards

Ian

Ian, just for yucks, I just looked it up on WineZap. Of 14 listings, 8 were at $89, one was at $150 (what are they thinking!), and five were $69-$79. The 2001 was $64 when I bought it, though I paid $42. It's somewhat interesting that there's been some price creep on that wine, since Aussies in general have stayed pretty flat, or come down. I remember D'Arenberg Dead Arm going for $70ish, and now it's commonly found around $50.

Let's don't forget that not that long ago A$150 was about $80 US, so it sounds like it might be less a case of higher prices in Australia than US importer eating the currency loss to try and keep market share.

[Jenise]

Good point, Dale. Didn't stop to consider that, but should have--Aussie dollars were worth about 33 cents American when I was last there.