Henschke
Mount Edelstone Shiraz
Eden Valley
2006

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

Mount Edelstone Shiraz is also from Eden Valley and named after the Mount Edelstone vineyard, which was first planted in 1912 by Cyril Henschke's father, Stephen Henschke.

The vineyard is located on the eastern slopes of the Eden Valley, at an altitude of around 400 meters above sea level. The vineyard is known for its unique soils, which are a combination of ironstone and quartzite. These soils, along with the cool climate of the Eden Valley, help to produce grapes with intense flavor and complexity.

The wine is made from 100% Shiraz grapes, which are handpicked and carefully sorted before undergoing fermentation in open-top vats. The wine is then aged for 18-20 months in French oak barrels, which imparts complex flavors and aromas to the wine.

Mount Edelstone is known for its rich, full-bodied character, with intense flavors of blackberry, black cherry, and plum. The wine also exhibits notes of vanilla, coffee, and chocolate, which are derived from the oak aging process. The tannins are firm and well-structured, giving the wine a long, lingering finish.

For years in the shadow of its famous sibling, the vines are now 110 years old, and producing wines that emulate Hill of Grace for a fraction of the price.

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.