Henschke Hill of Roses Shiraz 2022

What a beautiful, super elegant expression of Australian shiraz. What was once a nursery block on the Hill of Grace vineyard is now very much a wine of its own individual style defined by the most attractive florals, red fruits, ease of style and an underlying, deceptive power. Deep aromas of red fruits, plum, dark berries, lifted aromatic violet, fivespice, cassia bark, wood smoke and earth. Spices are integral to the Hill of Roses style and here they shine. Tannins are supple - deceptively so - because they are also structurally solid forming the basis for not only a wine of beauty but also substance.

The 2022 Hill of Roses Shiraz is eminently red-fruited, and this really aligns with my previous perceptions of this wine…each year the vines grow more, and the wine becomes darker, more powerful and more intense. However, it still retains its red-fruited heart throughout all the versions of climate and vintage. This is lighter, fresher and fluffier than the Hill of Grace Shiraz, and the tannins are “easier” somehow.

There is good integration throughout, and the nose does give notes of chocolate, mocha, coffee beans, blackberries and blueberries, aniseed, cloves, cassis and cocoa powder. This is a stunning Hill of Roses, with complexity already evident, great length and perfect balance through to silky, cashmere-like tannins. A seductive and alluring texture completes the picture. Pristine and taut, this will be a star over the next thirty years. Love it, and I expect the score to nudge up a touch further.