2011 Tyrrell's 4 Acres Shiraz

The Tyrrell’s estate, nestled in the foothills of the Brokenback Range in the Hunter Valley, is a unique patchwork of vineyards. Thriving in a diverse range of soils, from sandy loams lying on ancient creek beds to heavier red clays over limestone, these vineyards produce some of the most distinctive and refined wines in the world.The 4 Acres vineyard, planted with 1.05 hectares of Shiraz vines in 1879 by Tyrrell’s founder Edward Tyrrell, is the oldest block on our Ashmans property. In 1964, every second row was pulled out to allow cultivation by tractor after the company’s draught horses were retired. Situated at an elevation of 140 metres at the top of a hill to the right of the winery driveway, the vineyard is planted on deep-red podzolic clay over limestone. On the western side of the vineyard there are also 1.7 hectares of Pinot Noir vines, which it shares with the 8 Acres vineyard. Taken as cuttings from Mount Pleasant, they were planted in 1972 by Murray Tyrrell with the aim of replicating the great red wines of Burgundy. Today, the vineyard is the source of the grapes for our 4 Acres Shiraz and, together with the 8 Acres vineyard, our Vat 6 Pinot Noir.