Discover the history of the Hunter Valley at Tyrrell’s. Five generations of Tyrrell family winemaking can be traced to an unassuming one-roomed hut that still stands in front of the winery today. Built by hand in 1858 and progressively surrounded by grapevines, the hut of ironbark slabs was founder Edward Tyrrell’s home. In the over 160 years since, the Tyrrell family have lived and breathed wine growing and winemaking in the Hunter Valley and have amassed an unrivalled knowledge of what makes the Hunter one of Australia’s, and indeed the world’s, greatest winegrowing regions. Tyrrell’s helped to pioneer what are now two of Australia’s favourite wine varieties - Chardonnay and Pinot Noir - and have been instrumental in establishing Hunter Valley Semillon as one of the world’s iconic wine styles. Tyrrell’s Winemaker’s Selection Vat 1 Semillon is Australia’s most awarded white wine, having won almost 5,500 medals and more than 330 trophies. The Tyrrell family owns eight of the 11 oldest vineyards in NSW and uses fruit from these ancient vines to craft the wines that make up the collection of Tyrrell’s Sacred Sites wines. Among those wines is Old Patch Shiraz, which has been awarded a perfect 100-point score for four releases in a row* - 2014, 2017, 2018 and 2019 - by influential US wine journalist James Suckling. Tyrrell’s recognise the responsibility to make all operations as sustainable as possible and are committed to doing everything possible to reduce their environmental impact, whether it is in the vineyard, in the winery or in their broader operations. Tyrrell’s is a proud member of Sustainable Winegrowing Australia, the national program that helps grape-growers and winemakers demonstrate and continuously improve their sustainability in the vineyard and winery by focusing on the environmental, social and economic aspects of their businesses. Since launching an Environmental Management System (EMS) program in 2009, Tyrrell’s have achieved a 68 percent reduction in fuel usage and a 70 percent reduction in consumption of coal-fired electricity, which adds up to a 70 percent reduction in total greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of more than 2,700 tonnes of carbon dioxide. This translates to a 32 percent reduction in our greenhouse gas emissions per litre of wine produced. The fact that Tyrrell’s has so many old vines that have been producing quality wine grapes continuously for so long now (36 percent of our vines are more than 50 years old and 11 percent are more than 100 years old) is a good indicator of the sustainability of their vineyard management practices. Tyrrell’s was among the founding members of Australia’s First Families of Wine, an organisation that helps to build awareness of premium Australian wines and their heritage. Handed down through four generations, the company is now managed by Bruce Tyrrell. With Bruce’s son and fifth generation, Chris, now involved in the business, Tyrrell’s will continue to remain family run, with each generation focused on passing the business to the next in better condition than they received it, all the while being guided by Edward Tyrrell’s motto: “Nothing is great unless it is good.”