Tyrrell's Wines VAT 1 Semillon 2016 (75 cl)
Semillon Australia
Average critic rating: 95,4
Suckling : 96 Jancis Robinson: 17,5 The Wine Front : 95 Vinous : 95
A very nice concentrated Semillon, fresh, mineral, pure, which stretches with brilliance as the tasting progresses.
Green apple, stone fruit and citrus with a hint of coconut, hazelnut and frangipane.
To drink with roast chicken or duck.
James Suckling : 98/100
There is a wow factor in this wine, how it manages to harness such impressive power and concentration and return it in such a smooth, seamless and tubular form is something to wow. Aromas of lime and stone fruit lead to flavors of the same kind, of astonishing purity, length and refinement, while flavors of green apple wrap it all up with freshness and sparkle. Drink now or leave to age, superb.
James Suckling -27 Juillet 2016
Jancis Robinson: 17++/20
Full bottle 1241 g. Screw cap. The wettest winter in a decade, followed by a "wild summer with hot days and afternoon thunderstorms". Hand-picked fruit from the best parcels, including some old vines planted in 1923, which grow on ancient sandy loam soils. The youngest block was planted in 1990. Hand-picked. Crushed and pressed as quickly as possible. Cold settling. Fermentation using neutral yeast, racking of the raw lees and aging in stainless steel. No malolactic fermentation. No oak. Bottled June 2016. Bruce Tyrrell says he's harvesting a little more ripe (was 10% before), but he doesn't worry about the sugar - what matters is that the grapes are ripe to taste .
Delicate trace of flint smoke. Bergamot and green apple. A lean and racy whisky, a wine of steel taut with a hint of hazelnut and coconut. A minerality licked by the lime, sucking stones, forms the long, very long spine of the wine. Not an ounce of flesh, yet the fruit is there, beautifully formed. As it opens in the glass, a taste of wax develops and a graceful note of frangipane appears. The vigor of this intellectually playful wine lasts forever in the mouth. (TC)
Tamlyn Currin - 26 Avril 2022
Maturity: 2022 - 2045
The Wine Front: 95/100
The price is $50 for Private Bin members, but since this is a mature wine, the price is the same as listed below. Anyway, I've been tasting these wines for ten years now before they went on sale, which I think is a good thing for Wine Front subscribers, but also a bit of a task. harder for your (not so) humble scribe. The description and evaluation of small Hunter Semillons is an interesting task. The wines are barely formed, and the flavor descriptions don't really jump out of the glass, or cause an avalanche of knocks. What I'm looking for, I think, are the following fundamentals: balance, line and length, and the absence of off-flavours. If these elements are correct, the rest will follow. Oh, and maybe a little X-factor too.
Lime and fresh lemon, a whiff of white peach, a subtle scent of white flowers. Light and fine, almost a vanilla scent on the palate, a ripe citrus crunch, a bit chalky in texture, and then the big chunk - a superb, long finish - full of latent flavors and power. The first tank is once again at the height.
Gary Walsh - August 2016
Maturity: 2019-2039+
Vinous : 95/100
Brilliant straw. Aromas of dried pear, lemon balm, beeswax, honey and jasmine, with mineral and fennel undertones. Intense, mineral citrus and orchard fruit flavors show firm tension and a powerful, sharp aftertaste. A dry and nervous style, but by no means strict, even if those who appreciate the opulence of a white wine may balk. The finish is impressively long and focused, with repeating floral, beeswax and pear notes.
Josh Reynolds - September 2022
Maturity: 2026-2035
