Penfolds St Henri Shiraz 2010

Penfolds Rewards of Patience tasting panel 2021 - 5/5 rating

St Henri is a time-honoured and alternative expression of Shiraz, and an intriguing counterpoint to Grange. It is unusual among high quality Australian red wines as it does not rely on any new oak. Released for the first time by Penfolds in the early 1950s (first commercial vintage 1957), it gained a new lease of life in the 1990s as its quality and distinctive style became better understood. Proudly, a wine style that hasn't succumbed to the dictates of fashion or commerce. St Henri is rich and plush when young, gaining soft, earthy, mocha-like characters as it ages. It is matured in old, 1,460 litre vats that allow the wine to develop, imparting minimal, if any oak character. Although a small proportion of Cabernet is sometimes used to improve structure, the focal point for St Henri remains Shiraz. 

"The palate has seamless flow and build with immense concentration at play. Dark liquorice, blackberry and plum are swathed in deeply ripe, smooth but strong tannins. The finish holds and holds, with dark plum here too. Having terrific length and depth, this will go down as one of the greatest ever St. Henri releases."  James Suckling

"The abiding character of St Henri is its longevity, particularly in the context of better vintages. It has none of the make-up of new American oak that can hide the imperfections of a lesser vintage. A great St Henri will come into its own in a bare minimum of 10 years, and live long thereafter."  James Halliday 

The 2012 Penfolds St Henri is 100% shiraz from premium vineyards in the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Adelaide Hills, Wrattonbully and Clare Valley. It was aged for 12 months in 50+ y.o. large oak vats.

"Medium-deep crimson. Fresh blackberry, cassis, black cherry, dark chocolate, ginger and five-spice aromas. Beautifully concentrated black cherry, cassis and liquorice flavours, ripe and dense chocolaty textures, rose garden and aniseed notes and pronounced indelible acidity. Finishes chalky firm and minerally. A great St Henri vintage. Peak drinking 2023 to 2045.

Vintage Conditions: A consistent theme across South Australia was the healthy and above-average winter rainfall. This not only fuelled strong canopy framework but resulted in welcomed soil water reserves, safeguarding vines across the months that followed. Unswerving from the trend of the 2000s was an earlier budburst, f lowering and harvest across Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and the south east. Whilst not without challenges from September hail and strong spring winds, Shiraz experienced relatively even set. A November hot spell and replenishing rain pushed the vines ahead in maturity. December temperatures were cooler than November, offering vines ideal growing conditions through to veraison in early January. Mild and dry ripening conditions were complimented by cool nights, with healthy vines yielding fruit that exhibited optimum flavour, and colour development, varietal typicity and vibrancy."  Penfolds

Expert reviews

"Medium-deep crimson. Fresh blackberry, cassis, black cherry, dark chocolate, ginger and five-spice aromas. Beautifully concentrated black cherry, cassis and liquorice flavours, ripe and dense chocolaty textures, rose garden and aniseed notes and pronounced indelible acidity. Finishes chalky firm and minerally. A great St Henri vintage. Peak drinking 2023 to 2045."  Penfolds Rewards of Patience tasting panel 2021 - 5/5 rating

"I felt palpably nervous before tasting this wine. To my mind, it was the most important wine of the whole event.  I have been waiting for this taste for four years. Harvest conditions meant that this had to be a great vintage for St. Henri. But how great?  That was the only question. I never will wines to win 20s in my notes. They just happen without me questioning it. Perfect wines don't have to try too hard. For me, this is the finest young St. Henri I have ever tasted. It is phenomenal in every way. I cannot imagine how it could be bettered. I like it more than the fêted 1990 and 1971. It is 100% Shiraz and it draws on fruit from all corners of the State. The clarity of message from start to finish is arresting. Gago picked out a few vineyards in the Adelaide Hills to try to explain just how this wine has benefited from the aromatic purity of the fruit from these parts – Waterfall Gully, Rostrevor and Paracombe. They add wistful spice and heavenly floral notes to the already majestic drive and intensity of fruit. The tannins are awesome and you already know that the oak is old! It provides the wooden stage for this heavenly beauty to entrance your whole being. Dense damson and blueberry notes cavort – the whole experience is almost transcendental. Epic and thrilling I couldn't spit it out. I couldn't whiplash it out of my mouth even if I was crashed into at speed while waiting for a red light to change. Weirdly it wasn't swallowed either – it was subsumed into my soul."  Matthew Jukes – 20++/20 points

"The finest vintage under this label since it was first released during the 1950s. With a history interlinked with the story of Grange, 2010 St Henri stands as the triumph of this year's Penfolds luxury release. The wine is amazingly expressive with deep colour, superb fruit complexity, voluminous richness and supple textures. Dark chocolate, dark cherry, blackberry, mocha, roasted chestnut aromas are followed by a richly concentrated palate full of dark chocolate, paneforte flavours, generous sweet fruit notes and ripe loose-knit chocolaty tannins. It finishes graphite firm, long, and minerally. A gorgeous wine with all the hallmarks of long term ageing potential.”  Andrew Caillard MW – 100 points

"A very handy vintage of this classically styled Penfolds red. Bright hearty fruit dominates amid earth, tar and dark nutty elements; boot polish too, really deep. The palate has seamless flow and build with immense concentration at play. Dark liquorice, blackberry and plum are swathed in deeply ripe, smooth but strong tannins. The finish holds and holds, with dark plum here too. Having terrific length and depth, this will go down as one of the greatest ever St. Henri releases."  James Suckling, Jamessuckling.com - 98 points

"Very deep purple-black in color and showing an attractive nose of warm blackcurrants, blueberries and licorice with a complex undercurrent of mocha, cedar, menthol and grilled meat, the full-bodied 2010 St Henri Shiraz is relatively rich in the mouth, offering tons of fruit structured by firm, fine tannins and refreshing acid. It finishes with great persistence. Drink it 2015 to 2030+."   Lisa Perotti-Brown MW; Wine Advocate – 97 points

"If you buy no other Penfolds this release, don't miss St Henri. It's as if the 2010 season was perfectly orchestrated for this large format, old oak style. A celebration of this great vintage, this is one of the finest under this label of the modern era, perhaps ever. The epitome of the St Henri style, effortless and elegant, with epic purity and definition, deep and full, yet in not way heavy or overbearing. Wonderfully crunchy and impeccable blackberry, blueberry and plum fruit is accented with notes of liquorice and dark chocolate, presented in a framework of beautifully crafted, finely honed tannins and excellent acid profile. It has space and grace, while lacking nothing in presence and structure, propagating with line and length nothing short of breathtaking. Wow. The price hasn't moved in three years, and long may it stay this way. 100% shiraz from the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra, Adelaide Hills, Wrattonbully and Clare Valley, matured for 12 months in old, large 1460L vats. Price: $95, Drink: 2020-2040."  Tyson Stelzer, Wine Taste - 97 points

"St Henri is the one Penfolds super premium we all should be following. This 2010 release is the best since the 2004. In short, it's gorgeous. I'm tempted to use the words Beg, Borrow or Steal. Nose, palate, tannin, finish; all are in full, healthy voice. Licorice, leather, plum, clove. Fine-grained tannin. Juicy orange-peel notes. Well stored, under screwcap, it will live for just about ever. Drink: 2020-2040."  Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front – 96+ points

Awards

Penfolds Rewards of Patience tasting panel 2021 - 5/5 rating

About st henri

The first vintage of St Henri – then Auldana Cellars St Henri Claret – was produced in 1888, beginning one of the most famous and enduring names in Australian wine. It was likely named after Auldana's winemaker Léon Edmond Mazure's son Henri or his wife, Philomine Henriette. The wine immediately enjoyed success, winning the Championship Cup for Best Claret in Australia at the Adelaide Wine Show in 1890 and then again as a joint winner in 1891. The St Henri label disappeared somewhere around the beginning of World War 1, probably because of reduced export sales. It was revived by Senior Red Winemaker John Davoren at Penfolds in 1953 to celebrate the centenary of Auldana Cellars (established by Patrick Auld in 1853) but the wine was not widely released. The 1953 release was made from Auldana and Paracombe fruit and the label design was based on original St Henri labels found in a loft at Auldana Cellars shortly after its sale to Penfolds in 1947.

According to retired Penfolds Senior Winemaker John Bird, the first vintages of St Henri were cabernet sauvignon and mataro blends. The fruit was foot stomped in open-ended hogsheads during vinification. After fermentation, the wine was matured in oak vats rather than hogsheads for around 18 months. John Davoren's aim was to make a wine in the traditional Claret style, accentuating fruit and maturation characters, rather than oak complexity. In this way the winemaking style differs to Grange, as it relies on larger seasoned oak vessels without any barrel fermentation. The 1957 vintage is officially recognised as the first St Henri commercial release under the Penfolds name. Nonetheless, John Davoren describes all of the 1950s vintages as "trials”. These experimental wines from 1953 to 1959 mark an important step forward for winemaking in Australia. Not only does St Henri honour the late 19th-century aspirations of Auldana's proprietor Sir Josiah Symon and winemaker Léon Edmond Mazure, but without the professional rivalry between Max Schubert and John Davoren, the Grange story would not have the same richness or romance. Initially St Henri achieved greater commercial success than Grange, although both were offered to the public as Claret styles. St Henri was a more elegant, approachable and familiar style because it reflected traditional winemaking techniques, whereas the revolutionary Grange was something of a blockbuster with more richness and fullness.

Today Penfolds St Henri is a multi-regional multi-vineyard South Australian blend, primarily based on shiraz, although it still honours the original style. Significant contrbutions of shiraz come from Barossa Valley, Eden Valley, Clare Valley, McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek, Robe and Bordertown; cabernet sauvignon from Coonawarra, Barossa Valley and Adelaide Hills. After vinification the wine is matured in seasoned large oak vats for around 15 to 18 months before bottling. 

St Henri was labelled 'Claret' until the 1989 vintage. Packaged in laser-etched bottles
since the 1996 vintage. Released in many markets under screwcap since 2005. St Henri Shiraz possesses a unique stature in the story of Australian wine. With its proven style and aging potential, it is a favourite among Penfold's collectors. 

Extract from Penfolds Rewards of Patience tasting panel 2021

After the success of early sherries and fortified wines, founders Dr Christopher and Mary Penfold planted the vine cuttings they had carried on their voyage over to Australia. In 1844 the fledging vineyard was officially established as the Penfolds wine company at Magill Estate.

As the company grew, so too did Dr Penfold's medical reputation, leaving much of the running of the winery to Mary Penfold. Early forays into Clarets and Rieslings proved increasingly popular, and on Christopher's death in 1870, Mary assumed total responsibility for the winery. Mary's reign at the helm of Penfolds saw years of determination and endeavour.

By the time Mary Penfold retired in 1884 (ceding management to her daughter, Georgina) Penfolds was producing 1/3 of all South Australia's wine. She'd set an agenda that continues today, experimenting with new methods in wine production. By Mary's death in 1896, the Penfolds legacy was well on its way to fruition. By 1907, Penfolds had become South Australia's largest winery.

In 1948, history was made again as Max Schubert became the company's first Chief Winemaker. A loyal company man and true innovator, Schubert would propel Penfolds onto the global stage with his experimentation of long-lasting wines - the creation of Penfolds Grange in the 1950s.

In 1959 (while Schubert was perfecting his Grange experiment in secret), the tradition of ‘bin wines' began. The first, a Shiraz wine with the grapes of the company's own Barossa Valley vineyards was simply named after the storage area of the cellars where it is aged. And so Kalimna Bin 28 becomes the first official Penfolds Bin number wine.

In 1960, the Penfolds board instructed Max Schubert to officially re-start production on Grange. His determination and the quality of the aged wine had won them over.

Soon, the medals began flowing and Grange quickly became one of the most revered wines around the world. In 1988 Schubert was named Decanter Magazine's Man of the Year, and on the 50th anniversary of its birth, Penfolds Grange was given a heritage listing in South Australia.

Despite great success, Penfolds never rests on its laurels. In 2012 Penfolds released its most innovative project to date - 12 handcrafted ampoules of the rare 2004 Kalimna Block Cabernet Sauvignon.

Two years later, Penfolds celebrated the 170th anniversary – having just picked up a perfect score of 100 for the 2008 Grange in two of the world's most influential wine magazines. Today, Penfolds continues to hold dear the philosophies and legends – ‘1844 to evermore!'.