Not without considerable excitement did I sit down to the forthcoming releases of the Big Four reds from Henschke. They didn’t let me down. Mainly from 1994, they reflect the fineness and intensity of the top wines of the vintage. The 1994 Cyril Henschke Cabernet Sauvignon, one of the most successful of recent Australian show wines, is every bit as classy as its track record would suggest. Long, refined and supremely elegant for such an overt style, it is packed with concentrated fruit and beautifully tied together with integrated smoky cedar oak and fine-grained tannins. Rated 19.0, drink 2006+. The Abbots Prayer 1994 is driven by the sweetness and fleshiness of its high merlot content, brilliantly balanced with mocha and chestnut oak. A complete, restrained, yet powerful wine. Rated 18.7, drink 2006+. The Hill of Grace 1993 reveals spicy, heavily-worked greenish notes, with tarry, meaty flavours and slightly stalky, hard-edged textures. Typically thick and powerful, it is a fraction porty and lacks great length and the finesse of previous vintages. Rated 17.9, drink 2005+. The buyer’s highlight of the forthcoming release will be the Mount Edelstone 1994, a delicious, sumptuous red of freshness and sparkling clarity of spicy fruit. Scented with violets, dark, sweet berries and fragrant oak, its concentration of fruit utterly belies its elegance. Rated 18.6, drink 2006+.
