ELEPHANT HILL HIERONYMUS 2020

Winery notes (2020 Vintage)
"The Icon range is the pinnacle of our winemaking. They are fine and rare wines made in strictly limited quantities. Our top Cabernet Merlot blend is named after a famous ancestor of the Weiss family, who own Elephant Hill, Hieronymus Ebner von Eschenbach, Lord Mayor of Nuremberg 1512-1524."

Rated Outstanding & 98/100 Cameron Douglas MS, September 2023 (2020 Vintage)
"An exceptional wine with a powerful, ripe and complex bouquet. Scents of black and blue fruits, dark spices of barrel and aromas of blackberry and black currants, dark chocolate and freshly roasted coffee beans, violets and baked earth, fresh boysenberries, plums and kalamata olives. Powerful, complex and dry on the palate, salivating taut, lush and detailed. A wine of concentration and intensity from the core of dark berry fruit flavours, firm ripe and polished tannins delivering long chain mouthfeel compressed by a backbone of acidity. A wine that keeps repeating flavours and textures with an exceptionally lengthy finish. Best drinking from 2028 through 2050."

5 Stars & 98/100 Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, September 2023 (2020 Vintage)
"A glorious rendition; the gorgeously scented bouquet shows cassis, warm spice, subtle tobacco and cedary oak characters, leading to a powerfully concentrated palate exhibiting exceptional depth and presence, together with finely woven chalky tannins, finishing structured with an impressive line and length. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (39%), Merlot (38%) & Cabernet Franc (23%) from Gimblett Gravels. At its best: 2025 to 2040."

97/100 Andrew Caillard MW (2019 Vintage)
"Deep crimson. Lovely blueberry, cassis aromas with praline/ mocha notes. Richly concentrated wine with plush blueberry, cassis, dark plum fruits, fine looseknit chocolaty textures, very good mid-palate viscosity, underlying roasted chestnut/ vanilla notes and persistent long acidity. Magnificent."

5 Stars Michael Cooper (2020 Vintage)
"The distinguished 2020 vintage is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (39 per cent), Merlot (39 per cent), and Cabernet Franc (22 per cent), matured for two years in French oak casks (54 per cent new). Densely coloured, it is almost super-charged, with lush, notably concentrated blackcurrant, plum and spice flavours, hints of dark chocolate and coffee, a slightly earthy streak adding complexity, and ripe, supple tannins. A wine with a real sense of soul, it is already approachable, but set for a very long life. Best drinking 2027+."

5 Stars & 19.5-/20 (97) Candice Chow, Raymond Chan Reviews, October 2023 (2020 Vintage)
"Full, deep ruby-red, lighter on edge. The nose is attractive and harmonious, packed with bright cherry, cassis, plum, violet, cigar, minerals and an amalgam of spice. Full-bodied, elegant and rich red cherry, cassis and black plum aromas entwined with violet, cigar, clove, star anise and stony minerals. The mouthfeel is velvety with fine-grained tannins, unfolding a rich mineral palate. The concentrated fruit shows vibrant with lively acidity and carries a long, lengthy finish. This flagship red blend is powerful, rich, full of details, broadness and length. Match with Tomahawk and braised short ribs over the next 15 years. "

18.5/20 Joelle Thompson, JoelleThompson.com (2020 Vintage)
"Bordeaux lovers will adore this commanding Cabernet Sauvignon with its powerful aromas of blackcurrant leaf, a hint of green pepper and savoury spice are fleshed out with Merlot adding body and a softness in the mid palate (38% of the blend) and dark red berry flavour notes coming from 23% Cabernet Franc. Natural yeast fermentation (no commercial yeasts added) was followed by 24 months of ageing in barrel, a chunky 54% new oak, which sits comfortably in this impressive ripe red wine. This is deliciously, succulently drinkable now but has structure that begs to be aged and matured for up to a decade and beyond."

5 Stars & 95/100 Bob Campbell MW, The Real Review, September 2023 (2020 Vintage)
"A blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and cabernet franc from the Gimblett Gravels sub-region. Dense, almost chewy wine with chocolate/mocha, cedar, charcuterie and leather flavours. Bordeaux-like red with cellaring potential."