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As one of Australia’s oldest family-owned wineries, Henschke has been making wine for over 150 years in the Barossa’s Eden Valley. Established in 1868, Henschke is resolute in its desire for complete integration of vineyard and winery, through six generations of family grapegrowing and winemaking tradition in the Eden Valley, Barossa Valley and Adelaide Hills.
1868
The Henschke family has been making wine since Johann Christian Henschke planted a small vineyard in the Barossa’s Eden Valley in the early 1860s, with the first recorded sale of Henschke wine in 1868. Having immigrated from Kutschlau, Silesia to South Australia in 1841, Johann Christian first settled in the Adelaide Hills before purchasing 70 acres in the Barossa Valley village of Krondorf. Fifteen years later he purchased a further 80 acres in the North Rhine district (later renamed Keyneton), which became the home of Henschke. Initially, the first-generation winemaker, a stonemason and wheelwright by trade, made wines for his family and friends, however as demand inevitably grew, wines were made for sale. The early vintages from the property’s small vineyard produced 300 gallons per year.
1873
Barossa-born Paul Gotthard Henschke took over the running of the family’s Keyneton property in 1873, which had been transferred from father to son for the sum of five shillings the previous year. He continued the farming and winemaking traditions of his father Johann Christian and when more vineyards were planted, Henschke’s wine production gradually increased by 1,600 gallons per year. In 1891, he purchased land with a small planting of vines near the Gnadenberg Church, which was to become known as Hill of Grace Vineyard. Gotthard was the organist for the Gnadenberg Church for many years and in 1888 he formed the first known brass band in the district, the Henschke Family Brass Band.
1914
Paul Alfred Henschke, known by his family as Alf, became the custodian of the Henschke family’s farm and winery in 1914. In 1907 he married Johanne Ida Selma Stanitzki, the granddaughter of Nicolaus Stanitzki who planted the original vines at Hill of Grace Vineyard circa 1860. Alfred extended the original stone cellar at Henschke, installing brick and cement fermentation vats and underground tanks. Until this time farming had been the main pursuit, but as the demand for fortified wine increased, focus was given to increasing production and expanding the vineyard acreage. He continued to make dry red and dry white 'hock', sold to local customers by the barrel or stone jar, which in the Barossa were known as ‘krugs’.
1950
Fourth-generation winemaker Cyril Henschke, the youngest of 12 children, took over the family winery in 1950. While his father’s wine market had been largely fortifieds, Cyril began to focus on the production of fine dry table wines as the market improved. With the help of his brother Louis, he added fermentation cellars to the winery and later underground tunnels for storing bottled wine. By the mid-1950s, Cyril was recognised as a pioneer of single-varietal and single-vineyard wines, with his greatest legacy being the creation of Mount Edelstone and Hill of Grace; two shiraz wines from the Eden Valley that have become an integral part of Australia’s fine wine history. Cyril was the first Australian winemaker to be awarded a Churchill Fellowship and in 1970 undertook his study tour throughout winemaking regions of Germany, California and South Africa. He was also a founding member of Barons of the Barossa in 1975.
Prue and Stephen Henschke
The Future Custodians
