2012 Futures White HVD Semillon (Redeemable in 2016)
$152 per Option
Alc: 10.5%
pH: 3.06
TA: 7.09
How to Order
To join the Tyrrell’s Futures Wine program, simply complete the Future’s application form online or by download an order form and send it to Tyrrell’s Wines, together with an amount to cover the value of the Option you wish to take.
To download an order form, please click here
Winemaking Notes
All of the fruit was handpicked and then very lightly pressed where only the free run juice underwent a cool fermentation. After ferment the wine spent a minimal time on its yeast lees being ‘cleaned up’ and was bottled in July 2012
Style
This wine is already showing all of the typical characteristics we see from HVD as well as the footprint of vintage 2012. It has an intense, powerful core of citrus fruits, along with the softness and approachability we see year in, year out from HVD. Slightly leaner in style from the previous vintage due to the cooler growing conditions. This wine is built for a long life in the cellar.
The HVD Vineyard
Tyrrell’s HVD vineyard is situated within the Hunter Valley, 150km north of Sydney. First planted in 1908 and partally replanted in the mid 80s, the original semillon block known as the Sign Post, and the original chardonnay block (also planted in 1908), are still producing wine of great character.
The HVD Vineyard has light, sandy, well drained soils and is situated between two creeks that run out of Moore’s Gully. We use traditional viticultural techniques of cane pruning and clean cultivation with a mound thrown up under the vines. This reduces the temperature at the base of the vines. The clean cultivation reduces moisture competition from grass and weeds plus closes any cracks in the ground to prevent moisture evaporation during the hot months of December and January.
The 2012 Vintage
We had a similar growing season to 2011 with plenty of rain during spring and early summer and had to fight to stay ahead of downy mildew and bunch rot throughout the whole season.
Semillon was different this year to perhaps any vintage Tyrrell’s has seen. By about the second week of January, most of the leaves on the semillon decided it was autumn and started to curl at the edges and go yellow. Normally, we wouldn’t see this until early April. So, the semillon fruit sat at low sugars and very high acids and had to wait. We gambled on leaving the very best semillon until last to try and get higher sugars and lower acids, and some normal semillon flavours.
All of the top semillon was hand picked and double sorted in the vineyard to make sure the lower quality berries were kept away from the good, clean fruit. As we are now getting the whites cleaned up, we are getting happier and happier with the quality of them.
So, what potentially looked like a disaster at the start and part-way into the growing season, turned out to be one of the best white vintages of the past five years.
Cellaring Potential
Fresh and zesty in its youth, Hunter semillon begins to develop sophisticated and complex characters after 4-6 years maturation. It’s the bottle age with its natural acid that gives Hunter Semillon its delicious honey and fresh buttered toast character. The 2012 HVD Hunter Semillon will be superb drinking in 2016, but will live until at least 2022.