Winetastic

Pioneered in 1858 Tyrrell’s Wines are one of the more established and renown wineries in the Hunter Valley. The cellar door isn’t a fancy affair for a company that are currently exporting to over 30 countries worldwide and producing over 500,000 cases of wine a year. We happened to be there on a particualarly busy day, so tastings were farily crowded and rushed, but the quality of Tyrrell’s wines is unquestionable.

Tyrrell’s Reserve Stevens range includes two wines, a Semillon and Shiraz, sourced from what are regarded as some of the finest old vineyards in the Hunter Valley. If you’re looking for your typical hunter red then the 2002 Reserve Stevens Shiraz is a great example with it’s ripe fruit, tight acid and integrated tannin structure, which has been enhanced further by four years bottle ageing prior to release.

Vat 9 has been the flagship of Tyrrell’s Shiraz production and it’s easy to see why. Handpicked fruit from old vines growing in soil that is heavy, rich volcanic clay with underlying limestone, this wine is known for it’s well structured palate with spicey fruit flavours and great length. The 2002 Vat 9 Hunter Shiraz is no exception though there is a hint of sweetness to be found.

I couldn’t do a cellar door write up and not mention Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Hunter Semillon, the winner of no less than 756 trophies and awards to date. One of Australia’s finest Semillons, Vat 1 epitomises the benefits of patient bottle ageing that can transform an unoaked wine. There are several vintages of Vat 1 available for tasting including the 1999 Vat 1 Hunter Semillon. This is a fantastic wine, mid green in colour with the clean lifted fruit aromas of the classic old style beginning to develop, the palate has tight citrus overtones and is just beginning to display toasty bottle aged complexity. If you’re in the Hunter I recommend stopping by Tyrrell’s, if only to taste the 2006 Vat 1 Hunter Semillon. A light green to gold in colour this wine has a nose richer and more intense than most young semillons. The palate is dominated by lanolin, citrus, a hint of sweetness and a clean acid finish, recommended cellaring until 2012, we walked away with two bottles of this at $27 cellar door price.

Producing some of Australia’s finest Semillon and Shiraz, Tyrrell’s is well worth a visit if you’re in the area. They have some decent and approachable entry level wine as well worth looking at.