Tyrrell's, 8 Acres Shiraz, Hunter Valley

Tyrrell’s Sacred Sites wines are truly brilliant. Time capsules, history in a bottle, and amongst the very best Shirazes Australia produces. The 2018 8 Acres is evolving beautifully, complexity and palate authority there in spades. The nose, black plums, dark raspberries, iodine, pepper and leather, hints of tobacco, autumnal earth, black tea, maybe a little vanilla. Gorgeously medium-bodied and silky smooth on the palate with beautifully integrated super fine tannins. Dark fruit, iodine, nori, pepper and leather, subtle charred meat …

Stunning. Bright and red fruited, with some hibiscus and smoked ham savouriness. A hint of Hunter semillon in the aromatics, quite interesting. Elegant, graceful, almost weightless, hardly medium-bodied. Pinot-like in a way, but it has a creamier texture. Proper, but not marked tannins, alcohol is a tad elevated. A nuanced, detailed wine, the complete opposite of the ripe and big Barossa shiraz. What an intense flavor and length of aftertaste. Brilliant wine with such a unique character. Read more: https://screwcapped.com/magnificent-australian-shiraz-tyrrells-8-acres-2018/

On day one this wine was really out of sorts- creamy, full bodied, touch of liquorice and molasses. I just couldn’t see its quality. On day two, wow, such a huge transformation to a light bodied, elegant and long Hunter. Colour is very pretty high reflection purple red. Ground coffee, cacao nibs and woody spice on the nose. Light bodied rhubarb and raspberry on entry. Translucent through the middle with an almost ethereal grace, fine and gentle red earth. Savoury …

Red black colour. Beautiful aromatics. Strong aroma of black fruit, pepper and spice. Black fruit dominates, plum, blackberry, blueberry Medium body, pepper, turmeric, very fine tannin. A bit sharp on the finish. A great wine given time,

Hunter Valley - 3 Cellar Doors (Hunter Valley) : {screwcap, 14%, A$90} A new ‘Sacred Site’, not yet sold out. Harvested Feb 1; all of 2700 litres produced. This has polished blackberries on the nose, intense and pointed, but never heavy. The palate has medium/high acidity, low/medium powdery tannins, medium weight and a medium length, even palate, with youthful, black-tinged savoury flavours. Time, gentlemen, please. Hard to see value, yes; but then all the Sacred Site red wines are a …

Tyrrell's 2018 Red Release Tasting : Darker in colour than the 4 acres. Smoky meat and earth, roses, white florals and cranberry. Bright fruit on the palate with plenty of acid. High toned and carries long, but really needs time to settle down. Hope to see it again in time.