Incredibly fresh and refined, with deeply brooding notes of dark plums, mocha, graphite, five spice and cured meat. The palate is ultra-refined and pure, with balanced acidity, seamlessly integrated tannins and a creamy texture, showing complex notes of mulberries, cassia bark, pepper, violets and licorice. It is truly exceptional, and is an icon of Australia for a reason. Made from vines that are over 150 years old. Brilliant. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

The pre-phylloxera vines planted on their own roots stretch out in front of the beautiful old Lutheran Gnadenberg church, whose name translates to ‘Hill of Grace’. At the moment the wine is tightly coiled, but time in the glass allows it to open up and reveal layers that hint at its potential for mature splendour. The list of fruit characters is long – there’s red plum, cedarwood, bitter cocoa, Szechuan peppercorns, blood oranges and garrigue – but as soon as you list one flavour you’re struck by a completely different note. There’s nothing shouty about this wine, just subtle waves of flavour that roll over the palate, effortless balance and a finish that stretches towards infinity. Yes, it’s expensive, but it comes pretty darn close to perfection. Matured in 13% new, 87% seasoned hogsheads (84% French, 16% American) for 18 months.

The 2021 Hill of Grace Shiraz comes from a vineyard that sits at 400 meters above sea level—a beautiful, remote-feeling place. The vineyard is picked block by block, defined by vine age, soil types, elevation and position within the vineyard. The older vines within the vineyard tend to hold their acidity and retain lower pH with higher natural acidity than the younger vines, which also assists in determining the parcels. "Ironically, this is the simplest wine to make; it's the vineyard that produces the wine like this. It's due to the work in the vineyard over many generations," says Stephen Henschke. So, to the wine. It is pure and fine, with a languid pool of fruit that is characterized by black silty tannins and persistent, seamless length. This speaks of the ancient place, the rocks, the vines. This is just a magnificent, graceful wine here, one that is "immune to hyperbole," as they say. 14.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap. The Wheelwright vineyard has 50-year-old vines, Mount Edelstone is over 100 years old, and the ancestor vines in the Hill of Grace vineyard are aver 150 years old.- EL

This outstanding 2021 Shiraz Hill of Grace is a confident young wine built for the long haul in a punchy package that is still tightly wound. It is starting to reveal some of its charms with rocky, licorice, blackberry, and dried herb aromas. The palate is quite extraordinary, particularly the quality of tannins, pithy texture and strident composure, which drive a finish of extreme length and are all accented by deep minerality. The 2021 is a star in the making and easily the best vintage since 2018. -By Angus Hughson on April 2025

Australia's most famous single vineyard, from one of its most treasured longest standing wine estates, this latest release from the outstanding 2021 vintage offers just what collectors of this special wine have come to expect: an exceptionally poised and classy wine that sings of its site and history. Lucid-yet-concentrated aromas of plump plum, blackberry, Chinese Five spice, along with a vegetal tang, open. There's density to the palate, acidity padded into the rich, satiny texture and ultra-fine tannins. Still in its nascent stage, this it set to go down in the history books as one of the great Grace vintages. — Christina Pickard

This is a stunner, with waves of flavor and detail on a supple, seamless texture. Opens with notes of ripe black cherry and wild blackberry, with accents of tapenade, star anise, black truffle, sage, bittersweet chocolate, espresso, black pepper and palo santo on the epic finish, where the details keep coming. Shiraz. Drink now through 2039. 80 cases imported.