In 1995 the decision was made to produce a super premium red wine at the very top end of the scale that would take Vasse Felix to a dimension of quality not seen before. With utmost fruit selection, barrel selection and varietal blending freedom the Heytesbury was born.

The name Heytesbury was chosen as a tribute to Vasse Felix’s parent company, Heytesbury Pty Ltd controlled by Janet Holmes à Court.

The 1997 Heytesbury won the Best WA Dry Red Table Wine of the Show at the 1999 Perth Royal Show, Best Wine of the Show at the WA SGIO Wine Awards, Best Cabernet and Cabernet Blends in Australia & New Zealand Annual Winestate Magazine Wine of the Year Awards and Gold Medal at the 1999 Mt Barker Wine Show, Gold Medal at the International Wine Challenge (UK Wine Magazine), Best Red Blend at the 1999 Sheraton WA Wine Awards, Gold Diploma at The 1999 Expovina Wine Awards, Switzerland. Top scoring wine at the Advertiser Top 100 Wines – Adelaide, whose comments were: -
“I trust that Janet Holmes à Court recognises this fabulous elixir as the crowning glory of all her glittering hoard. It is indeed a delicious and ravishing thing and a perfect example of why many people think Cabernet Sauvignon is the best of all red grapes. Tight, clean, lovely, smooth, assimilated, dry, sweet, intense- nothing protrudes and there is nothing more to say but “drink”.

The 1998 is a worthy relative of the great 1997.