Penfolds St Henri Shiraz 2023

97 POINTS

Jeni Port - Winepilot

by Jeni Port Not the easiest of vintages, 2023 was cool and wet. This might explain the arrival of a new region to the St. Henri blend: Frankland River. It joins Port Lincoln and regulars McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley and Padthaway in what must have been a busy blending exercise. Keeps true to the style in warmth of personality. A deeply coloured wine with intense blackberry, plum, briar, earth, leather aromas. The texture is striking, layered in deep pile, fine tannins and tiers of ripe black fruits, spices that lift, notes of chocolate and earth and a clean, smooth run through to the finish. A challenging vintage once again proves the value of Penfolds multi-regional blending philosophy and turns out an impressive St. Henri. by Ken Gargett 100% Shiraz, maturation is in large older oak vats, for this vintage, twelve months. This particular release is especially interesting as fruit from outside South Australia has been included. A percentage of the Shiraz is from Frankland River in Western Australia. Given how special the vintage was in that region, it shouldn’t really be a surprise. The other regions to contribute were McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Port Lincoln and Padthaway. An extremely good, though not absolutely elite, St Henri. Dark plum/opaque maroon in colour, this is ripe and generously flavoured, most approachable in its youthfulness. The balance is excellent and the finish lingering. On the nose we have aromas including bay leaves, black fruits, cocoa powder, baking spices, mulberries, smoked meats, bergamot, aniseed and something akin to a chocolate snack bar which is rather enticing. Seamless, supple and with a creamy texture and a line of juicy acidity, this is so well balanced. It really is an excellent St Henri, and will provide pleasure for the next twenty-five years. 2026 – 2051. 96 Points by Lisa Cardelli Like descending into a cool, dark cave in the middle of scorching summer heat, you get overwhelmed with an overall sense of coolness and stillness; a quiet moment to regroup, reflect and reassess. It’s all there: freshly crushed black cherries, boysenberries and the wildest blackcurrants, alongside the aroma of freshly brewed Chinese tea. But you sort of have to move around in the dark, touching cold walls while feeling fresh droplets under your fingers. The palate mimics that continuous stream of water flowing from somewhere. The fruit density melts into that of the tannins, the oak wrapping around the two elements, combining everything together to give you that light you were searching for. You’re welcome to drink it now, as it gives you hints here and there, but I’d prefer to wait a little longer. 2026 – 2050. 96 Points by  Tom Kline Shiraz from McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Frankland River, Port Lincoln and Padthaway; 12 months in large, seasoned oak vats with no new oak. First released commercially in 1957, St Henri has always stood as Grange’s deliberate counterpoint — proudly unreliant on new oak, matured instead in large, seasoned vats that let the wine’s own structure and savoury character develop rather than layering on oak influence. It’s a style that has held its identity through decades of changing fashion, rich and plush on release before settling into softer, earthy, mocha-like tones with age. Deep-set and brooding in the glass with sweet shortbread, cacao nib and black pepper at the fore before blackberry, black cherry, mint choc and black liquorice emerge. There’s some menthol, coal and black tea with further air. There’s good concentration to the palate — it drives through the mouth with black pepper dancing around blackberry, black cherry, plum, menthol, black liquorice and mint again. The savoury spice notes re-emerge through the finish alongside the dark fruit drive and liquorice tones. The tannins are quite integrated but long and driving, elongating the finish to great length. A dark-fruited and brooding affair with complexity and length in abundance.

97 POINTS

Dave Brookes - Halliday Wine Companion

A very strong release for this classic Australian wine with a strong cellaring pedigree. Deep crimson in the glass with a purple edge and fruit tones of black cherry, satsuma plum, blueberry, and blackberry. Hints of brown spice, minerals, crushed herbs, tobacco leaf, dark chocolate-dipped cherries, black tea, roast meats and earth. There's a succulence and intensity to this year's release that is infectious; those enticing characters slowly shape-shift into something more savoury and vital at its core. The structure and fruit density suggest longevity is a given, along with balance and grace to boot. These are very good characters indeed. What a cracker.

96 POINTS

Julie Sheppard - Decanter

St Henri is the only top Penfolds red that doesn't rely on new oak, instead spending 12 months in large, seasoned oak vats. This no doubt contributes to its approachability in youth, which is even more evident in this appealing vintage. Harmonious and detailed aromas of freshly crushed black and blue fruits, with a meaty savouriness, herbal wafts and ironstone minerality, lead to a generous and open palate. Light on its feet, with finely wrought tannins and a persistent core of pitch-black fruit, adorned with an umami savouriness, gravelly minerality and spicy notes of star anise, liquorice and black tea. Fruit sourced from McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Frankland River and Port Lincoln. Released at £95.

96 POINTS

Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2023 St. Henri Shiraz was sourced from McLaren Vale (55%), Barossa Valley (21%), Frankland River (8%) and the balance from Port Lincoln and Padthaway. 2023 is the first time that Shiraz was sourced from Frankland River for the St. Henri, and this is significant, given it is Western Australia, when most of the fruit for the cuvées traditionally are sourced from the eastern states. To lend this comment context: 2023 was a cooler, wetter season in Barossa, a cooler season in McLaren Vale, and yet over in the west, it has shaped up to be one of the very best, most balanced, most energetic vintages in recent memory. So here, the 2023 St. Henri Shiraz is silky and fine, balanced and herbal, with star anise and shaved fennel, raspberry, milk chocolate, violets and freshness. It is really excellent. These current St. Henri's are very different in style to the early iterations of the cuvée, yet they manage to express a similar effortlessness and ease. I would say, on balance, that the alcohols are higher than the wines from the 1980s and before, yet the tannins are very polished and cleverly managed. I think this serves to set them apart or, at least, to create two schools of stylistic thinking—I am, for what it's worth, a fan of both. It matured for 12 months in large-format seasoned oak vats. 14.5% alcohol, sealed under natural cork.

96 POINTS

Campbell Mattinson - The Wine Front

All the Penfolds St Henri releases, going back to the 1956 release – here. St Henri Shiraz is the wine in the Penfolds range of red wines that doesn’t see new oak: this 2023 release spent 12 months in large seasoned vats. This release is 100% shiraz, grown in the McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Frankland River, Port Lincoln and Padthaway wine regions. Price is unchanged at $135 RRP. The noticeable difference in this wine, in a Penfolds context, is the lower or non-existence of oak flavour, but almost more noticeable is the lower impact of sweetness on the flavour profile. It’s ripe for certain, it’s not herbal, but it feels dry not just on the finish but throughout. This dryness adds an elegance, especially in tandem with this release’s mineral or graphite-like edges. We see plums and cherries here, asphalt even, along with peppercorns, and we also see wonderful extension through the finish. I’m happy to mark this as an excellent release of St Henri. It has more overt structure than usual, integrated as it is. St Henri is customarily cellar-worthy, but this release is particularly so.