Henschke
Cyril Henschke Cabernet Sauvignon
Eden Valley S.A.
2016

The producer

The Henschke family arrived in Australia as part of the German/Silesion dispora that populated the Barossa Valley in the early 1800s. Their original property was at Krondorf but they leased and planted grapes at Parrot Hill on what was to become Hill of Grace in 1858; the property was finally purchased in 1891. They purchased the current winery property adjoining in 1862, and the first recorded wine sales were in 1868 the date given as the establishment of Henschke Wines. The Mount Edelstone vineyard was planted in 1912.

The big changes came with fourth generation Cyril Henschke who took over in 1952 and immediately started phasing out the production of fortified wines in favour of table wines. Something was obviously working as the 1956 Mount Edelstone won first prize at the Royal Agricultural Society Grand Easter Wine Show in Sydney the following year. The first vintage of Hill of Grace was produced in 1958.

Stephen Henschke and his wife Prue assumed control in 1979 and the wines and their fame hit the stratosphere in the following decades, and are now among the most-demanded wines in Australia and abroad. Hill of Grace regularly vies with Penfolds Grange as Australia’s top wine. Mount Edelstone makes a strong statement of quality in its own right and we offer both wines. Henschke also produces an outstanding straight Cabernet Sauvignon, named after Cyril Henschke. 

The wine

The “Cyril Henschke” Cabernet Sauvignon is produced from Eden Valley vineyards and honours patriarch Cyril Henschke. The wine is made from a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes mainly sourced from the Henschke vineyards in Eden Valley. The wine is typically aged in French oak barrels for 18-20 months, which imparts complex flavors and aromas to the wine.

The Cyril Henschke Cabernet is known for its rich, full-bodied character, with intense dark fruit flavors such as blackcurrant, blackberry, and plum. The wine also exhibits notes of chocolate, coffee, and vanilla, which are derived from the oak aging process. The tannins are firm and well-structured, giving the wine a long, lingering finish.

The wine  is highly regarded, consistently receiving high scores from wine critics and is often considered one of the finest Cabernet Sauvignon wines produced in Eden value (and Australia), and is a testament to the Henschke family's commitment to quality winemaking. While it is relatively expensive it is gorgeous and delivers excellent value for money at this level. 

We choose our wines based on a range of criteria (see how we choose our wines) of which critic scores is just one. Rather than simply highlight the best score to promote a wine, our average critic score is calculated from the scores provided by several respected wine critics, who we follow for specific regions. They do not represent all critic scores and, wherever possible, we try and give more weight to more recent reviews. Where appropriate we consider market-based scores like Global Wine Score or Wine Searcher Average scores.

As a rule, we look to offer wines that achieve a 92/100 average critic score or better and frankly a lot of very good wines simply don’t make the cut. As a high-end provider we want to reflect that positioning in the quality of wines we offer. Such wines are only a tiny fraction of those generally on offer in the market. We believe that an average score is a more conservative and representative approach, but it is still subjective and only offered as a guide to our customers, who will (and should) do their own research. We will add individual critic scores to our website in the future.