Henschke Mount Edelstone 2016
SKU
HNES201612 UCAU
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Nurtured by viticulturist Prue Henschke and vinified in traditional open-top fermenters by winemaker Stephen Henschke.
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97 Points, Decanter
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Sourced from a premuim private cellar
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1 or more bottles$224.99
Editors notes
The beautiful and historic name Mount Edelstone is a translation from the German Edelstein meaning ‘gemstone’, a reference to small yellow opals once found in the area. The Mount Edelstone vineyard was planted in 1912 by Ronald Angas, a descendant of George Fife Angas who founded The South Australian Company and played a significant part in the formation and establishment of South Australia. Unusual for its time, the vineyard was planted solely to shiraz. The ancient 500-million-year-old geology in the vineyard has given rise to soils that are deep red-brown clay-loam to clay, resulting in low yields from the dry-grown, ungrafted centenarian vines.
First bottled as a single-vineyard wine in 1952 by fourth-generation Cyril Henschke; by the time Cyril purchased the vineyard from Colin Angas in 1974, Mount Edelstone was already well entrenched as one of Australia’s greatest shiraz wines. Crafted by the Henschke family for over 60 years now, Mount Edelstone is arguably the longest consecutively-produced, single-vineyard wine in Australia.
Details
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Wine Type
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Vintage
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Variety
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Brand
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Location
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Cellaring
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Closure
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Alcohol Percentage
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Bottle Size
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Oak Type
Tasting Profile
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Light (Light)Full (Full)
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Low Tannin (Low Tannin)Tannic (Tannic)
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Sweet (Sweet)Dry (Dry)
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Low Acidity (Low Acidity)High Acidity (High Acidity)
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Aroma
- Blackberry
- Blueberry
- Pepper
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Palate
- Blackberry
- Fruit Cake
- Tobacco
Food Pairings
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Pork -
Red Meat
Critic Scores & reviews
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Decanter
97"“Powerful but unobtrusive tannins – like an engine purring – support dark, perfectly ripe blackberry, mulberry and plum fruit, with hints of strawberry, red fruit leather and smoked charcuterie notes from the oak. Spice and dried herb nuances unfurl over three days, beautifully articulating the terroir and its 104-year-old vines through notes of black pepper, sage, tea tree, star anise, mint and cardamom. Ripe and refreshing redcurrant sustains the sweet, spiced fruit through the long, sinuous finish. Terrific purity, poise and panache.“"
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James Halliday
97"“The vineyard was planted in 1912, hand-picked, matured in 80% French and 20% American hogsheads (19% new). The vintage was challenging, but this shiraz shows no sign of that. It is full-bodied, very complex and very long, the tannins expertly massaged and drawn under the fruit. Blackberry, tar and bitter dark chocolate all contribute to what will be a very long-lived wine”"
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Joe Czerwinski
96"“The 2016 Mount Edelstone Vineyard Shiraz is steeped in complexity, with aromas ranging from camphor, bay leaf and sage to smoke and grilled beef and from blueberries and blackberries to plums laced with spice. Full-bodied, rich and intense, it’s ripe and velvety textured, with a long, licorice-tinged finish and dusty tannins that bode well for the cellar. From vines planted in 1912, I suspect this will come close to the quality of the Hill of Grace at a fraction of the price. Tasted again the following day from the open bottle, this was even better, seamless, flowing and harmonious in the mouth.”"
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Huon Hooke
95"“Excellent colour, deep and youthful with strong purple tints. The bouquet is robust and concentrated, mixed spices, led by pepper and earthy notes, a trace of eucalyptus-mint, rich and dense as it is also in the mouth. A collossus of a wine. There's a lot of charry oak input and this tinges the aftertaste with a little bitterness. A powerhouse of a shiraz, and quite heavily extracted, but also superb. Long-term.”"
Other vintages
Love this wine? Here's a list of other vintages we have in stock if you'd like to try them as well.
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- Variety Shiraz
- Vintage 2017
- Brand Henschke
- Cellaring 15 Plus Years
- Wine Type Red
- Alcohol Percentage 14.5% Alcohol
Henschke 'Hill Of Roses' 2017-
Decanter93 points
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Mike Bennie92 points
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Joe Czerwinski96 points
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James Suckling96 points
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James Halliday'97 points
$430.00
Current auction
All current auctions for this wine & any different vintages.
Locations
Australia
Australia's wine industry is a thriving part of the country's economy, contributing significantly to employment, production, export, and tourism. In fact, the industry is the fourth-largest wine exporter in the world, shipping out 760 million liters of wine to countries including France, Italy, Spain, and the UK. One of the key factors contributing to Australia's success as a "New World" wine producer is the formal export and marketing of its wines through Wine Australia.
Australia's wine regions are scattered across the south and southeast, with almost every state boasting its own vineyards. Victoria, for example, is home to an impressive 21 wine regions. Some of the most famous wine regions in Australia include Margaret River, Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Eden Valley, Clare Valley, Hunter Valley, Yarra Valley, and local regions to New South Wales such as Cowra, Southern Highlands, and Mudgee.
Australian winemakers are known for producing a diverse range of grape varieties, with Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Noir being among the most popular. They tend to focus on producing wines that are ripe, fruit-forward, and easy to drink, using modern winemaking techniques and equipment such as stainless steel tanks and temperature-controlled fermentation.
With its bold, fruit-driven flavors and reputation for quality and diversity, Australian wine has become a popular choice for wine lovers around the world. And with such a broad range of wine regions and grape varieties, there's something for every palate to enjoy.
South Australia
If you like Australian wine, then you probably like South Australia wine. The rich reds produced there put Australia on the wine-making map of the world. With over 40% of the country's vineyards, South Australia can rightfully call itself the wine state.
Wines are produced in several regions throughout the state, though many are naturally grouped together, like Barossa and Eden Valleys, only 15 minutes apart. They include such regions as Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Eden Valley, Coonawarra, Adelaide Hills, Kangaroo Island, Langhorne Creek, The Limestone Coast, McLaren Vale and Wrattonbully to name but a few!
Barossa Valley boasts some of the oldest vines in Australia dating back to 1843 and produces some of the world's finest Shiraz, whilst the 'terra rossa' soils of Coonawarra is most suited to producing outstanding Cabernet Sauvignons. If you're a fan of Riesling, Clare Valley is a great place to explore and for a Maritime climate not dissimilar to parts of the Italian coastline, seek out the wines from McLaren Vale.
Eden Valley
Eden Valley is a cool climate wine region between 400 and 600m up the Barossa range, to the east of the warmer Barossa Valley. It is of a similar size to Barossa Valley, but given the altitude and cooler climate, Eden Valley is reknowned for producing high quality Riesling and Shiraz. Due to its cool climate, small portions of cooler Eden Valley fruit are often blended with 'sister' wines from the Barossa Valley.
The cooler climate provides optimum conditions for long, slow ripening of the grapes, which generally retain acidity and developing complex flavours on the vine. The townships sub regions include Keyneton in the east, Truro in the north and Mt Pleasant in the south and High Eden, located even higher up the Barossa Ranges, with even cooler temperatures.
The soils of the region is generally nutrient poor yellow podzolic/sandy & pink quartz soils over decomposed (gneiss) granite. With its rocky outcrop, which extends to the soild, most irrigation is provided by dams, and most vineyards plant their vines close together. When compared to Clare Valley, Eden Valley is slightly higher in altitude and a little cooler, though has similar sunshine hours, but lower levels of continentality.
About the brand Henschke
Stephen and his wife Prue are the fifth generation in the Henschke family, who have been making wine since 1868, and are passionate in keeping the family name, origins and reputation. Henschke is viewed as the best medium-sized red wine producer in Australia and is given a 5-star rating by James Halliday.
It has 4 vineyards in the Eden Valley, Barossa Valley and Adelaide regions. Many wines produced here are from Shiraz grapes, but there are also wines and blends from Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cabernet Franc, Semillon, Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Viognier, Pinot Gris and Muscat. Henschke is best known for a Shiraz based wine first produced in the 1958 vintage called 'Hill of Grace'. In 2005, it was classified as "Exceptional", the highest ranking in Langton’s Classification of Australian Wine.
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