99 POINTS
Dave Brookes - Halliday Wine Companion
Henschke has deemed the 2019 release 'a vintage graced by the nurturer', a reference to Prue Henschke's work in the vineyards and relentless pursuit of perfection in the viticultural field. I used to live on the property between Hill of Grace and Mount Edelstone and have seen first hand the hard work and love given to these vines, so hats off to the nurturer. Again, tiny yields in 2019, but it is a beautifully detailed, layered wine – as expected from these gnarled ancestor vines (160 years old). It's seamless with perfectly poised blackberry and dark berry fruits, five-spice, sage, softly spoken oak and the gentle tug of superfine, toothsome tannins. Lacy, mineral-laden acidity propels the wine forward and the finish is long, elegant and in perfect pitch. Grace by name, grace by nature.
97 POINTS
Sarah Ahmed - Decanter
Brooding blackberry and blueberry, with pronounced black tea notes, set the statuesque tone. In the mouth a dense tannin fretwork contains the muscular wall of dark fruit. Over four days, subtle flavours and textures of plum sauce and pomegranate syrup, orange blossom and rosewater (bergamot?) emerge, while the spiciness amplifies, with pungent liquorice, sandalwood, allspice and meaty cracked black pepper. Impressive grip, freshness and precision.
97 POINTS
Ned Goodwin - JamesSuckling.com
A superlative Hill of Grace, vinous and tautly composed. The sinew and torque are that of a distance runner over a sprinter, building with strength as the wine grows in the glass. While I would hold this for at least a decade, the sense is one of inchoate beauty. Riffs on dried sage, menthol, cloves, lilacs and blue fruit over anything dark or heavy. This takes me back to the way things were, perhaps, before the climate changed. Exceptional for the style. Benchmark for the site. Best after 2032. Glass stopper.
97 POINTS
Huon Hooke - The Real Review
Deep colour, still retaining a good tint of purple, the bouquet dusty/earthy/terracotta at first, then spicy berry fruits and earthy char notes join in, with black-loam nuances and the palate is deep and savoury, full-bodied and well supplied with drying tannins. The wine took time in the glass to reveal the fine detail for which the vineyard is renowned. The finish is big on black pepper drying tannins and savouriness. Concentrated and deep, and begs to be left alone in the cellar for a few years.
97 POINTS
Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate
The 2019 Hill of Grace Shiraz was picked earlier than the Mount Edelstone fruit, and it was picked on a single day, on March 8. This vineyard has more silt, and it brings out anise and five spice aromas in the wine. It ripens earlier than Mount Edelstone, is darker and more concentrated than the former and brings out the concentration of black fruit and fine tannins that the Eden Valley is so capable of. On the palate, the wine is super fragrant, elegant and fine, with bone broth and rose petals, peppercorns, crushed herbs, black cherry, raspberry pip, black tea and graphite. This is an eloquent wine, and it speaks of the evocatively beautiful place that is the Eden Valley. The tannins hold the fruit in a gentle way in the mouth. It is fine, such a fine expression—I must say, it's not at all what I expected of the 2019 vintage. It's a triumph of a wine. Super. 14.5% alcohol, sealed under Vinolok. Bottle number 0074.
97 POINTS
Christina Pickard - Wine Enthusiast
The warm 2019 vintage wasn't lauded as Barossa's best, but Henschke, on its lofty Eden Valley perch, has emerged with a small but beautifully supple range of ‘19s. Leading the charge is Aus's most famous single vineyard. A nose of dusty, dried herbs and violets, bay leaf and tomato atop blackberry and blueberry fruit—with a lick of polished oak—opens. There's a slinkiness to the palate, thanks to the ultrafine, savory, ripe tannins, which make this an approachable Grace now, but one that can still go the distance, two or three decades at least.
96 POINTS
Campbell Mattinson - The Wine Front
Henschke Hill of Grace Shiraz sees 20% new French oak. It’s all Shiraz, all grown on a vineyard first planted to pre-phylloxera material in the mid 1800s. Hill of Grace is mostly made from the oldest of these vines, though selections from 100 year old vines, 70 year old vines and 35 year old vines all make minor contributions now. 90% of the wine is matured in French oak (new, and seasoned) though 10% is matured in American oak.
This is a beautiful wine, rich and elegant at once, layered too. It’s both blueberried and leathery, with floral inputs, raspberry, cedarwood, coffee grounds and licorice. It has a creaminess to its texture but also a grain; it’s an LP-album of flavour, boasting both sheen and groove, blue and black, threads of red. The tannin is not overdone but it does not hesitate to assert. Everything here feels melted, sheened, glossed and well-cut. It will enjoy a long life.
95 POINTS
Angus Hughson - Vinous
The expressive and finely-tuned 2019 Shiraz Hill of Grace is generously proportioned but still holds its cards quite close to its chest at this early stage of life. There is distinctly ripe chocolate and cocoa to start before licorice, black olive and spice begin to rise. With excellent shape and composure, the seam of al-dente tannins provides both youthful drinkability and the backbone to assist with significant aging. A strong but not superlative vintage
