Description
Henschke, Eden Valley Shiraz “Mount Edelstone”
Henschke’s “Mount Edelstone” Shiraz is one of those wines about which I frankly have nothing insightful to add; a wine this profound, this special, this important, speaks for itself. Aussie wine enthusiasts have probably already stopped reading and are furiously clicking “Add to Cart.” For those unfamiliar, the rundown on “Mount Edelstone” is simple: this is one of the two or three most important Shirazes in all of Australia, a hyper-complex showstopper from century-old vines that’s grown and crafted by two of the greatest wine minds in the country. It’s a bottle that, year in and year out, makes a case for the Barossa as some of the greatest Syrah terroir on Earth. And with six years of age, it’s just now beginning to scale the heights of its potential. If you’ve got a cellar stocked with First Growth Bordeaux, Grand Cru Burgundy, and Napa blue chips, “Edelstone” will be right at home!
The Edelstone story begins in 1912, when Ronald Angas planted a Shiraz vineyard and some fruit orchards on family land in the Eden Valley, a subzone of Barossa. The Henschke family had settled in the region a half-century before and had been growing grapes and making wine since the 1870s. In the 1950s, the Angas family first offered fruit from Mount Edelstone to Cyril Henschke. Carl immediately recognized that Edelstone was special: beginning with the 1952 vintage, he bottled the vineyard on its own, an uncommon practice at the time. A few decades later, the Henschkes came to own Mount Edelstone, and have been producing singular wines from the site for over a half-century uninterrupted.
In a region where plodding, inky reds are par for the course, Henschke’s “Mount Edelstone” is something of an exception. Perhaps it’s the vines’ age, the dry farming the Henschkes employ, or the deep alluvial loam soils. Vineyard manager Prue Henschke chalks it up to an interplay between all three. Whatever the cause, “Mount Edelstone,” even when picked around 14 percent potential alcohol, retains an incredible balance between body and acidity. No doubt it’s a powerful wine, ready to rub shoulders with any Châteauneuf or Brunello, but grace and elegance are what set it apart from other Barossa bottlings. The 2017 vintage only emphasizes those characteristics; a wet winter followed by a cool growing season made for a later harvest and more spice-laden aromatic lift.
Or maybe “Mount Edelstone” is so beautiful because of the couple behind it. Prue and Stephen Henschke first met while studying at Adelaide University. Stephen is the youngest of Cyril’s sons, now the fifth generation of Henschke to work the family’s land. Prue and Stephen moved to Germany, where they studied viticulture and enology at the famed Geisenheim Institute, and took over the family business upon their return. Prue is now a renowned vineyard consultant and heads up the farming side of the operation, perpetually refining the plant material and regenerative practices at work in their vineyard. Just like his father, Stephen prefers to stay out of the limelight, his focus being the quiet work he does in the family’s old stone cellars. His is a timeless craft, the reds made with the same minimal inputs and hands-off ethos that guided four generations before him.
As mentioned above, the 2017 “Mount Edelstone” is really just starting to unwind, so if you’re drinking it right away, we’d recommend a good decant. You’ll want to see how it evolves and develops over the course of the night. It pours a deep ruby with purple flecks, and launches from the glass with waves of dark fruit, spice, and herbs. There’s crushed blackberries, blackcurrants, purple plum flesh, dried cherry fruit alongside the cuvée’s signature eucalyptus and mint tones, backed by rosemary, freshly-ground black pepper, hot rocks, and forest floor. The palate is sinewy yet luxurious, its ample body firmly backed by unexpected acidity and very fine tannins. It’s incredible right now, but give this a few more years in your cellar and it’s going to be soul-stirring. This is, in short, an iconic vintage of an iconic wine. You do not want to miss it.
