The Auswine Forum

2006 TYRRELL’S Vat 1 Semillon, Hunter Valley- N.S.W.

Tasted this blind. Initially I thought I was tasting a very clean and fragrant Eden Riesling from the 2006 release. It turned out to be a very clean and fragrant Semillon from Tyrrell’s. I certainly hope that you too get to try this delightful wine. Not as oily and concentrated as the 2004 (which is plagued by bottle variation) or as citrussy as the 2005 and will not live as long as the legendary 1989 but this new release is still an outstanding Semillon.



Colour bright clear. Hugely aromatic nose (especially for Hunter Semillon), flowery and fragrant. Very clean and pristine on the palate, light to medium bodied with beautifully tempting delicate flavours. Wow! Love drinking this. The wine’s character changes with temperature so do not over chill this one. Elegant, very young and full of life. Perfectly balanced with sensational acid structure. The finish is very long and flavourful. White stone fruits, acacia and melon dominates. Perfect with fresh seafood right now. Lovely drinking, it really is. Now to 12 years. A bargain at AUD $23 cellar door, 95 points. Alcohol is at 10.7% vol and it was bottled in July 2006. Exciting wine. If you dislike Hunter Semillon, it’s time to regain your faith.

Cheers,
Attila

Tasted: October 2006

Attilla

Great tasting notes. I tasted the wine a few weeks ago and agree wholeheartedly with your impressions. It is more ready for drinking than a lot of the earlier vintages of Vat 1 but should easily go 10 - 15 years.

Like the 2005 it has immediate sex appeal. I tried a 2000 Vat 1 recently and this still has about 3 years to go before it will hit its drinking window. Very limey with plenty of acid backbone - but should be wonderful given time.

KeithT

What is the story with the label on this wine?
From the picture, it seems the same as the old labels you used to get on this wine. Yet the current retail release (1999) has a more modern label.

Why are Tyrrells doing this? Is it to differentiate the early release wines from the standard releases? If so, how is the museum release differentiated?

Of even more interest, does anyone know their release policy? ie How much is released early each year, and how much held back for standard and museum releases? Also what is the timing of each release?

Minotaur wrote:What is the story with the label on this wine?
From the picture, it seems the same as the old labels you used to get on this wine. Yet the current retail release (1999) has a more modern label.

Why are Tyrrells doing this? Is it to differentiate the early release wines from the standard releases? If so, how is the museum release differentiated?

Of even more interest, does anyone know their release policy? ie How much is released early each year, and how much held back for standard and museum releases? Also what is the timing of each release?

Hello Minotaur,

The "old style labels" are on the Tyrrell's Vat wines that are sold at the cellar door. All of Tyrrell's Vat (Private bin) wines are available at cellar door not long after bottling, and for about a year - I tried to get more of the 2004 Vat 1 last month at CD but was not able to.

The labels that you see at retail are different in order to distinguish them from the wines sold at cellar door, as the "retail labelled" wines have been held back for a while in Tyrrell's cellars. In the case of the Vat 1 - 6 years, the Vat 47 - 2 years and the Vat 9 - 6 years as well (I am not certain about these aging period but they would be at least close).

So I guess the answer is "to differentiate the early release wines from the standard releases" but they are the same wine.

Kind regards,
Adair

I should also mentioned that once the "aged" wines at available at retail, they are then available again at the cellar door but at a much more expensive price - more than retail street price actually. They also have the "retail" labels on them (I am 98% sure).

Adair