Tyrrell's

When we started Waters Wine Company we had it in mind that we didn't want producers who were too big, or who sold their wines to supermarkets. For us, this dictum is largely intact. There was, however, one exception that we just had to make from the get go - Tyrrell's Wines.
We have visited hundreds of cellar doors over the years, all over the world. The laconic, Australian, friendly and unpretentious welcome that is Tyrrell's has never failed to deliver immense pleasure and respect.
Respect in the fact that great wines are made here, and have been for over 150 years. Respect in the fact that the dumbest questions that a young winelover asked at the cellar door were answered with patience and not in the least bit ridiculed.
And respect in knowing that these wines can only come from the Hunter Valley. Here is a producer who steadfastly stands by the styles that has made the Hunter Valley a great and uniquely idiosyncratic wine region. If ever there was a region that defined Australian exceptionalism in wine, it is the Hunter. And Tyrrell's Wines are the bedrock, benchmark and bookend of this tradition.
When describing wine most of us use epithets like 'modern', 'traditional' and so on. Perhaps the most fashionable descriptor these days is something like 'traditional winemaking', or made with 'traditional methods'. This is usually attached to a new or young producer, who you could invariably describe as 'modern'. So where does Tyrrell's fit?
Stylistically, Tyrrells is quintessentially Hunter Valley. These wines do not tip their hat to the northern Rhone, Bordeaux or Burgundy. Rather, they are entirely unto themselves.
There is certainly a claret-like profile in their red wines. Cool fruits of blue, red and sometimes black, coupled with a brooding bitumen earthiness that can only be Hunter. They do not wear the padded velvet of their South Australian counterparts. Usually medium-bodied, they have a structure of armour and angles. Firm thrashing tannins, tightened noose-like around a pulsing core of fruit. An acid line, spearlike, shaping and framing the wine, and driving the finish.
The whites are incomparable. Literally. There is now great consistency with Hunter Valley Semillon. There are some off-dry styles. Some Semillons have their fruit picked later, to create a more forward, softer, rounder early drinking wine. Tyrrell's Semillons are synonymous with gentler textures and length. For me it is their textural elegance and length of flavour that sets these wines apart from the rest of the Valley.
Website: www.tyrrells.com.au
Location: 1838 Broke Road, Pokolbin NSW 2320
Winemaker: Andrew Spinaze
Showing all 21 results
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Tyrrell’s Hunter Valley Chardonnay 2021
$20.00Tyrrell’s 2021 Hunter Valley Chardonnay has a lovely mix of citrus, white stone fruit and notes of star jasmine, with some oak spice on the nose. Medium bodied palate with great fruit intensity and texture. 2021 is a terrific vintage in the Hunter and this is surely the best value Chardonnay in the Valley! Waters […]
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Tyrrell’s Hunter Valley Semillon 2021
$20.002021 is another great Hunter vintage. Fleshy, citrus fruit – lemon zest and juicy lime. Classic Hunter Semillon with a softer edge, making this an earlier drinking beauty but one that will still cellar for a decade or more. Waters Wine Co Sourced from a small selection of Tyrrells’ favourite Semillon blocks, the grapes […]
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Tyrrell’s Hunter Valley Shiraz 2019
$20.00Vibrant purple colour, with a lifted nose showing red fruits and Christmas cake spice. The palate has wonderful concentration and depth yet is still lively and fresh. Soft ripe tannins and piquant acidity drive and carry the wine. A wonderful example of the modern, medium bodied Hunter Valley Shiraz. Unbelievable complexity and detail for a […]
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Tyrrell’s Old Hut Shiraz 2018
$45.00More lifted nose, with greater spice elements and geraniums. Red fruits mainly, with a glorious, tight and focussed palate. Remarkably tannins, velvety and persistent, hanging on and on. Complete wine and a masterclass of wine production. The best Old Hut ever made – a game changing Australian shiraz. Waters Wine Co. Click here for our […]
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Tyrrell’s Mother’s Shiraz 2018
$45.00The 2018 Mothers is darker than the Stevens and more closed. Darker fruits and Christmas cake spice from whole bunches. Sweet red fruits, plush palate. Focused and linear with strong spicy notes on the finish. Glorious wine and the best wine made from this vineyard. Waters Wine Co. Click here for our full Tyrrell’s range […]
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Tyrrell’s Johnno’s Semillon 2021
$75.00The vineyard for this wine was planted in 1908, the wine made in the method of that time – basket pressed, the juice only partly clarified. While the acidity provides the spine of the wine, it has more texture than almost all of its peers. Drink to 2036. 95 Points – James Halliday Click here […]
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Tyrrell’s Belford Semillon 2015
$35.00Lime, kiwifruit, grapefruit and pomegranate. Subtle savoury, leesy and toast notes. The 2015 Belford Semillon is almost full bodied yet it’s linear, tense, spicy and mineral. The most complete wine of this cellar release. Waters Wine Co. Click here for our full Tyrrell’s range
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Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon 2016
$90.00Sensual and suave, with flavours I haven’t found in a Vat 1 before. Just when I thought I knew what to expect! Preserved lime, fresh lemon, cream, kiwifruit, gardenia and honeysuckle. Subtle and very young. This seems quite open, but I feel this will shut down soon and be the better for it. A wonderful […]
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Tyrrell’s HVD Chardonnay 2021
$75.00The Old Vines Chardonnay block on HVD was planted in 1908 and is believed to be the oldest producing Chardonnay vineyard in the world.
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Tyrrell’s HVD Semillon 2015
$35.00White flowers, peach, lime and grapefruit. The 2015 HVD Semillon has a soft and pure middle palate with a lemony, chalky finish. Waters Wine Co. Click here for our full Tyrrell’s range
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Tyrrell’s Stevens Semillon 2016
$35.00Kiwi, lemon, lime marmalade, honeysuckle and grapefruit. Slightly waxy texture. The 2016 Stevens Semillon is very mineral with a spicy grip to close. Similar to Vat 1 in style. Tense and focussed. Waters Wine Co. Click here for our full Tyrrell’s range
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