Tyrrell's Wines

James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2011 - James Halliday
92 Points

Bright colour; immaculately clean and precise aromas of black cherries, dark plums and bitter chocolate; the American oak merely frames the voluminous fruit on offer with, all aspects combining effortlessly to conclude; long and luscious.

Weekend Gold Coast Bulletin - Lindsay Saunders
24 April 2010

With its lovely shiraz flavours of rich, dark berries and fruit and long dry finish, this drop is smooth and supremely drinkable.

Gold Coast Bulletin -
7 April 2010

The full bodied Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz has a long finish that is reminiscent of pure cocoa chocolate with a savoury edge.

Winewise -
February 2010

Commendably fresh for a difficult vintage. The palate is crammed with dark berry flavour. Ready now.

Central Western Daily - David Cumming
4th March 2010

The Tyrrell's Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz is a partner of the Heathcote Shiraz which I commented on last week. These wines offer outstanding value for money, especially when you consider that there is some serious discounting going on in the marketplace. This McLaren Vale Shiraz smells of dark berries, dried herbs, coffee and chocolate with some nicely inter-twined vanillin oak. It's a lovely full wine with attractive, ripe fruit flavours. The tannins are soft and approachable making this an all round good buy.

Drinks Trade - Sarah Davey
August/September 2009

Scott: Chocolate and spicy oak on the nose, with sweet fruit and a long, generous finish. Sandy: Notes of ripe red and black fruit. Some savoury notes, good length with a touch of cedar. Rob: Another pretty wine, with liquorice and raspberry aromas. Lovely silky tannins, with a soft finish. Tom: Charry oak characters with intense black fruits. A well-balanced wine.

Central Western Daily - David Cumming
25 June 2009

The 2007 vintage McLaren Vale Shiraz opens up with lovely coffee, chocolate and spice aromas combining with dark plum, chary oak and vanillin. The palate is well balanced with some dusty tannins and good length of flavour. It's an excellent partner to a dish such as steak and mushroom pie.

Liquor Watch - Liquor Watch
May 2009

The McLaren Vale Shiraz is dense red with sweet rich aromas. The wine is said to be dominated by dark plum fruit characters, with the oak and tannin adding structure to the palate without being overpowering.

Winestate - Winestate
June 2009

Big, rich oak quite obvious but it's in balance with the genuine, ripe, sweet varietal fruit and warming alcohol.

Daily Advertiser - Max Crus
2 June 2009

All you need for winter is a big fire, a feed and a Rufus over your head.

Life Gold Coast - Peter Rogers
June 2009

Densely coloured ruby with brilliant violet hues. Rich shiraz fruit notes of plum, licorice and spice show the power of the fruit and the sweet vanillin and tobacco of the oak provide an overall roundness and overall richness to the nose. The palate shows great weight, structure and intensity. Firm acidity and tannin sleekly frames bright plum, red berry and spice. Lovely, lingering finish.

2009 Big Red Wine Book - Campbell Mattinson
June 2009

There's often a clear quality difference between the two Rufus Stone reds, but this year they are two peas in the most beautiful pod. This is much like the Heathcote Rufus Stone except that it's darker and more chocolatey, its slippery-smooth skin of flavour overwhelmingly seductive from the get-go. It has a solid tannin structure buried in among the wealth of fruit and oak flavours, and a clear sense of persistence. Bugger the fancy talk: it tastes great and feels great in your mouth. Drink 2009-2016

Launceston Examiner - Mike Burnett
May 2009

This wine leans more towards plum and berry flavours, with the fruit being slightly more sweetish than that of the Heathcote. Oak again plays its role without being overpowering and the finish is more than adequate.

Sunday Canberra Times - Chris Shanahan
26 April 2009

This excellent pair (Rufus Stone Heathcote & Rufus Stone McLaren Vale) from Tyrrell's invariably attracts trade attention, resulting in very low prices for wines of such quality and provenance. As I write they're available for as little as $15.99 by the dozen - a real bargain, as they are so delicious and have the capacity to age well for another five or six years. The McLaren Vale wine presents the riper, warm-grown face of shiraz with chocolaty rich flavours and distinctive regional savouriness.

Illawarra Mercury - Kerry Skinner
22 April 2009

Tyrrell's produces two variations of this shiraz, one from McLaren Vale and the other from Heathcote. You won't be disappointed by either of them. This version is classic McLaren, big and ballsy with upfront plum and berry fruit flavours, spice and chocolate characters, great oak and silky tannins. Drink it with rare roast beef.

Australian Wine Companion - James Halliday
2010

Potent aromas, with a faint suggestion of reduction on the bouquet; blackberry and licorice and bitter chocolate drive the intense palate, oak incidental. Rating 90 To 2016

Winestate - Winestate
October 2008

Complex and classy number, with aromas of blackcurrants and a flavoursome palate somewhat overpowered by assertive oak and tannins for the moment.

Mount Barker Courier - Mount Barker Courier
17 September 2008

Aromas of ripe dark fruit with black pepper and subtle oak lead to a full bodied palate with dark chocolate and a savoury edge.

Australian Doctor - Australian Doctor
August 2008

Unmistakably McLaren Vale with intense plum and chocolate flavours on the back of rich grainy tannins. Rufus Stone is part of the Tyrrell's range and has always been a producer of quality shiraz at a reasonable price.

Central Western Daily - David Cumming
21 August 2008

Tyrrell's Wines are possibly more known for their Hunter Valley exploits than their McLaren Vale winemaking. They have been making wines not only from McLaren Vale, but also Heathcote in Victoria and the Limestone Coast region in South Australia. The Rufus Stone range, named after the tragic, accidental killing of King William II by Sir Walter Tyrrell in 1100, has both a McLaren Vale and Heathcote Shiraz in the range. This is a good example of McLaren Vale Shiraz with dark red berry, cherry, chocolate, spice and vanillin aromas. The palate is characterised by ripe, savoury fruit flavours with good structure, soft plump tannins and a nice palate weight. This is a food friendly, quaffable red.

Herald Sun - Paddy Kendler
19 August 2008

You have to admire the footwork of the leading Hunter Valley producers. They can't grow quality sauvignon blanc around Pokolbin so they buy some from Margaret River. They see a need for cool-climate chardonnay so they head up to Tumbarumba or Orange and so on it goes. In looking for a richer, more robust style than its Hunter Wines, Tyrrell's planted vines in McLaren Vale. The latest release is a warm and generous dry red that will stir all but the hardest of hearts over the remaining winter weeks.

West Coast Bulletin - West Coast Bulletin
6 August 2008

The wine is a full flavoured shiraz style boosted with additional palate structure and length from a small addition of Malbec. It makes for excellent drinking now and will cellar for the medium term.

West Australian - West Australian
7 August 2008

There's a beautiful perfumed fragrance here. A mix of spice and vanillin oak with lush stewed plum. Soft, fleshy, full ripe palate delivers with silky smooth style. 87/100

National Liquor News - National Liquor News
July 2008

Tyrrell's Wines is now celebrating 150 years of winemaking in the Hunter Valley and sources the fruit for this wine from its Willunga vineyard. It has a concentrated palate with redcurrants, blackberry and mocha, and is seen to be a good varietal example.

Westside News - Paddington - John Crook
25 June 2008

Fruit for this vintage is from Willunga in the very heart of South Australia's McLaren Vale region. Love the aromas of berries, pepper and spice. For a full-flavoured shiraz, it takes the prize. Try this one with a roast of beef or lamb, or enjoy the wine with a good robust cheese. Because of those historic connections with mother England, this wine also is a good dinner table conversation-starter.

Winestate - Winestate
June 2008

Smells of toasted coconut and pencil shavings oak. Big palate that coats the tonsils with ripe black berry and cherry flavours. Good use of oak creates lovely chocolaty/vanilla characters.

Manly Daily - Rick Allen
30 May 2008

Tyrrell's Hunter reds tend to be lighter framed, but this wine from McLaren Vale is much more muscular. This is big and rich with typical McLaren Vale blackberry and bitter chocolate flavours, topped off by vanilla and spice. Grab a hearty beef dish or stew and dig in!

Sydney Morning Herald - Ralph Kyte-Powell
27 May 2008

There's good balance between regional and varietal traits in this well-priced red. Regional earthiness and chocolatey notes harmonise well with the mixed berries and spice of shiraz. It's medium-bodied and soft, a shiraz of crowd-pleasing proportions. 90/100

Travel and Living - Winsor Dobbin
October 2007

The Tyrrell's family has been making wines in the Hunter Valley for almost 150 years and their semillons and shirazes are regional benchmarks. Under the stewardess of the late Murray Tyrrell, and now that of his son Bruce, Tyrrell's has increasingly concentrated on producing premium wines not only from the Hunter but also areas like McLaren Vale and Heathcote. The fruit for this bargain buy is sourced from the family's own vineyard in Willunga, in the heart of the warm-climate McLaren Vale region south of Adelaide. It's a big, fleshy, full flavoured wine which has been given extra wallop by the addition of a small portion of malbec. Rich and full-bodied with hblackberry and plum flavours to the fore and some black pepper, it's a wine for enjoying over the next five years. Drink with a hearty roast.

West Australia - Ray Jordan
4 Aug 2007

"Here, savoury meaty aromas sit well with the slightly cedary oak. The palate is remarkably firm and tight for McLaren Vale, suggesting a wine that has some ageing potential with its concentration of flavours. Seamless and well integrated." Quality: ****'/2 Value: **** Availability: ****

Canberra Times - Fergus McGhie
25 July 2007

"The '05 Rufus Stone shiraz is exactly what I was hoping for on the night I opened the bottle. It's a ripe, full-flavoured red with sumptuous ripe-fruit flavours and a generosity of texture bound to make it a favourite with even the toughest audiences. Plummy fruit and slightly sweet oak are a good recipe for any McLaren Vale shiraz, and Tyrrells does it as well as anyone in the region." 4 stars

Sun Herald - Winsor Dobbin
22 July 2007

Tyrrell’s Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz 2005 “This is a big, bold wine with ripe berry, black pepper and sweet oak flavours in delightful harmony. A full-bodied beast for enjoying with rich red-meat dishes.”

Epicure, Age - Ralph Kyte-Powell
22 May 2007

Tyrrell’s Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz 2005 “Although Tyrrell's is in the Hunter Valley, the winery has a good feel for grapes grown in other areas. This McLaren Vale drop shows good regional personality in its earthy, plummy nose and there are touches of spice adding dimension. The palate is intensely flavoured with good length.” 4 stars

Winestate Magazine -
July/ Aug 2006

“Spicy oak and tight, firm fruit aromas. Excellent flavour profile on an elegant palate. Plenty of acid to ensure a long life. A well-made wine.”