Murray Tyrrell
February 1921
Murray Davey Tyrrell is born in Cessnock, Hunter Valley, to Avery & Dorothy Tyrrell. He is the eldest of three brothers. Educated at Maitland High school, Hunter Valley.
1938
Elected School Captain Served in Pacific Theatre, Australian Armed Forces ~ World War II.
1945
Returned from war to become Cattle Trader in New South Wales.
1959
Murray Tyrrell, aged 37 takes over winemaking duties at Tyrrell's Wines after 'Uncle Dan' dies. Sherry is the main selling Tyrrell's product.
1960
Hail again destroys Tyrrell's crops (repeating the severe hailstorm of 1958) The subsequent 1959 & 1961 vintages are also adversely affected from the vine damage the years before. Murray Tyrrell employs radical solution to disperse further hail clouds ~ large sky rockets (imported from France) are fired into the hail clouds thereby transforming the potential hailstones into a harmless sleet.
1961
Murray introduces the 'Vat' labelling system and launches Vat 5, 7 and 9 ~ all Hunter Shiraz. Murray also pushes for the start of the Hunter Valley Wine Tourism movement.
1962
Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon first released (was actually called Hunter Riesling at the time) 1966 Murray releases one of Australia’s first true wine brands – the now famous Long Flat Red.
1967
The famous leaping-of-the-barbwire-fence episode. Murray Tyrrell leaps the barbwire fence at night-time to secure pruned cuttings from the then experimental Chardonnay vines from Penfolds HVD vineyard (HVD was bought by Tyrrell’s in 1982). Murray has these Chardonnay cuttings grafted to his own vine rootstock.
1968
Murray Tyrrell, Len Evans & nine co-founders establish Rothbury Estate. Murray is in charge of vineyard development. (Rothbury Estate is now owned by Mildara Blass).
1969
Tyrrell's Vat numbers are extended; more than 20 red Vat numbers are released this year. The range is called Tyrrell's Private Bin.
1971
Tyrrell's Vat 47 Pinot Chardonnay is first released. (The name Pinot Chardonnay reflected the then belief that this was the correct term for Chardonnay ~ the wine was not & has not been a Pinot Noir Chardonnay blend)
1973
Murray Tyrrell makes Australia's first oak-barrel fermented wine ~ his favourite vintage of Vat 47. Brand new French Nevers oak barrels were used.
1974
Sparkling Moselle becomes Tyrrell's biggest selling wine.
1979
Tyrrell's wins the prestigious Wine Olympiad in Paris, the Gault Milleau Award for the World's Finest Pinot Noir, with Tyrrell's Vat 6 Pinot Noir. The international wine community is stunned & the wine features on the cover of Time Magazine.
1983
Murray Tyrrell receives his famous nomenclature ~ 'The Mouth of the Hunter' from Melbourne wine writer Frank Doherty.
1986
Murray is awarded a member in the general division of the Order of Australia (Australian Medal - AM) for services to the Australian wine industry.
1994
Tyrrell's wins fight against proposed open-cut coal mine in the Hunter Valley.
October 2000
Murray Tyrrell passes away, aged 79 years.