The Henschke family’s 2022 Single Vineyard Collection from the Eden Valley will be released globally on Wednesday 6 May.
Stephen Henschke says the 2022 vintage is “one graced by belief” and celebrates the pioneering vision of fourth-generation winemaker Cyril Henschke.
The collection includes 2022 Hill of Grace Shiraz, Hill of Roses Shiraz, Mount Edelstone Shiraz, The Wheelwright Shiraz, Cyril Henschke Cabernet Sauvignon and Hill of Peace Semillon.
“It was my father’s belief in the inherent quality of the Eden Valley and its single-vineyard expressions that gave us first Mount Edelstone and, from his heritage, the eloquently named Hill of Grace,” Stephen says.
“It is easy to imagine his wonder as his first harvest of Mount Edelstone arrived at the winery in 1952, releasing the magic of the then forty-year-old Shiraz vines during fermentation, an exquisite perfume of florals, spice, pepper, sage and rich red and black fruit.
“Now, 70 years later, with the release of the 2022 vintage, Mount Edelstone has become one of the country’s longest consecutively produced single-vineyard wines and an integral part of Australia’s fine wine history,” says Stephen.
Cyril’s second single-vineyard wine, the 1958 Hill of Grace, was a tiny production from a pocket of ancient Shiraz vines tended by his forebears, watched over by the Gnadenberg Church.
At the time of its first vintage, the vines planted by his maternal great-grandfather, Nicolaus Stanitzki, were nearing 100 years of age.
Stephen and his wife Prue, a highly regarded botanist, environmentalist and viticulturist, became the custodians of Cyril’s vineyards and vision, carrying on his legacy with the creation of four new single-vineyard, single-varietal wines: Cyril Henschke, Hill of Roses, The Wheelwright and Hill of Peace.
Over the past four decades, Stephen’s meticulous work in the winery, combined with Prue’s constant drive to improve soil and vine health, canopy management and fruit quality across their vineyards, through regenerative viticulture and organic and biodynamic principles, has delivered a fresh depth and intensity to the Henschke wines.
Their passion for a more sustainable way of living seeks to restore balance to the natural environment, regenerate vineyard ecosystems and minimise harmful impacts to the earth.
“The 2022 vintage was mild, resulting in a late vintage, with harvest dates one to two weeks later than the historical average,” Prue says.
“Reminiscent of the high-quality vintages of 1991, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2010 and 2015, the 2022 single-vineyard wines show wonderful ageing potential and will reward long-term cellaring under ideal conditions.”
The 2022 Single Vineyard Collection will be available exclusively under the Stelvin screwcap closure, with four years of maturation in bottle.
Henschke sources locally made Stelvin closures and bottles to reduce its impact on the environment, while ensuring the quality and consistency of the wines’ long-term ageing potential.
“Our family is honoured to share this collection from a milestone vintage, honouring my father Cyril’s first single-vineyard creation with the 70th anniversary release of Mount Edelstone,” Stephen says.
“These wines speak faithfully of their place, with elegance, distinction and enduring beauty.”
The 2022 vintage of Henschke Hill of Grace, Hill of Roses, Mount Edelstone, The Wheelwright, Cyril Henschke and Hill of Peace will be available through fine wine retailers, restaurants and Henschke.
Henschke Hill of Grace Eden Valley Shiraz 2022
$1,100 – 60th release
Hill of Grace is produced from pre-phylloxera material brought from Europe in the mid-1800s. The original vines were planted around 1860 by ancestor Nicolaus Stanitzki, in rich alluvial soil in a shallow fertile valley just north-west of the Henschke family winery. The vineyard comprises of red-brown earth grading to deep silty loam and has excellent moisture-holding capacity for these old Shiraz vines. Hill of Grace is a unique, delineated, historic site that lies opposite a beautiful old Lutheran church, which is named after a region in Silesia known as Gnadenberg, translating to ‘Hill of Grace’. (Not produced in 1960, 1974, 2000 and 2011.)
Henschke Hill of Roses Eden Valley Shiraz 2022
$495 – 17th release
Hill of Roses is produced from a mass selection from the Grandfather Vines in the Hill of Grace Vineyard, planted as a nursery block in 1989 by Prue Henschke. The planting is known as the Post Office Block, after the historic Parrot Hill Post Office ruins overlooking the vineyard. These vines were a mere 12 years old when the wine was first produced in 2001 and while the vines are too young to be considered for inclusion in Hill of Grace, the quality of fruit from this selection has produced a wine that warrants a separate bottling and limited release. (Not produced in 2003, 2011, 2014, 2019 and 2020.)
Henschke Mount Edelstone Eden Valley Shiraz 2022
$300 – 70th anniversary vintage
Mount Edelstone has been crafted by the Henschke family for over 70 years and is one of the longest consecutively produced single-vineyard wines in Australia. Planted in 1912 by Ronald Angas, a descendant of George Fife Angas who played a significant role in the foundation of South Australia, the Mount Edelstone Vineyard comprises solely of shiraz, which was unusual for its time. The unique geological make up of deep red-brown clay-loam to clay results in low yields from the ungrafted centenarian vines. First bottled as a single-vineyard wine in 1952 by fourth-generation winemaker Cyril Henschke, it has become recognised as one of Australia’s greatest Shiraz wines. (Not produced in 2011.)
Henschke The Wheelwright Eden Valley Shiraz 2022
$165 – 7th release
The Wheelwright Shiraz expands on Cyril’s legacy and his belief in the outstanding quality of Eden Valley shiraz. On the winery’s centenary in 1968, Cyril planted a small shiraz vineyard in the cooler part of the Mount Lofty Ranges, in the central Eden Valley. It first became a source of shiraz for his ‘Claret’ style wines and decades of patience have allowed these vines to develop their own fascinating character and complexity. As the vines approached 50 years of age in 2018, Stephen and Prue released the first vintage of this wine from the 2015 season to commemorate 150 years of Henschke family winemaking and pay tribute to founder Johann Christian Henschke.
Henschke Cyril Henschke Eden Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2022
$210 – 42nd release
This wine was named in tribute to fourth-generation winemaker Cyril Henschke, one of Australia’s outstanding winemakers and a passionate pioneer of single-vineyard, single-varietal wines. The Cyril Henschke Cabernet Sauvignon was first produced as a single-vineyard wine in 1978, originally from vines planted by Cyril in 1969. Since the early 1990s the fruit has come from Stephen and Prue’s 1988 planting of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc in the same vineyard, and celebrates the incredible beauty that emerges from the vibrant rows of the north-facing site. This wine is revered for its texture, depth, complexity and fine-grained tannins. (Not produced in 2011 and 2017.)
Henschke Hill of Peace Semillon 2022
$90 – 6th release
Hill of Peace was first produced in 2012 from 13 rows of low-yielding Semillon vines planted in 1952 by fourth-generation grower Louis Henschke, on shallow red-brown earths in the Hill of Grace Vineyard. The Semillon vineyard lies across from the Gnadenberg (Hill of Grace) Church and Cemetery and makes up a mere 0.53 hectares of the eight hectare site. Delivering remarkable complexity and distinctive Eden Valley Semillon characters, Hill of Peace is only made in seasons of exceptional quality that warrant a separate bottling and limited release. (Not produced in 2013, 2016, 2019, 2020 and 2021.)
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