Bruce Tyrrell’s Guide to Wine Appreciation

January 20, 2012

The first Hayman Wine Weekend for 2012 featured, 2010 Winery of the Year, Tyrrell’s Wines.

The family-owned winery is a cornerstone of the Australian wine industry and owns premium vineyards which extend from their legendary home in the Hunter Valley to other distinguished grape growing regions of Australia including McLaren Vale in South Australia and Heathcote in Victoria.

Fourth generation owner, Bruce Tyrrell, hosted a wine appreciation as part of the Hayman Wine Weekend. Below are his top five wine appreciation tips.

1. Look
“You’re looking for a bright, vibrant colour. Nice and clear. If it’s cloudy there’s probably something wrong with it.”

2. Smell
Swirl the wine around in your glass. Wine glasses are designed to hold the aroma. It should smell clean and, well, wine-like.”

3. Taste
“It should taste how it smells. T he character on the nose should flow onto the palates. Really great wines are the ones you can taste all the way down to your collar.”

4. Practice
“Practice makes perfect. It doesn’t take long for people to pick up the variations between different styles and regions.”

“People generally stick to what they know, so my advice is to try something new. Just about every restaurant in Australia does wine by the glass now – It’s a great way to try wines that are usually out of your comfort zone.”

5. Drink What You Like

“Don’t worry about reviews and what other people say, just drink what you like.”

“The best compliment for me, isn’t a great review or a fancy description, it’s ‘geez that’s a nice wine, I’d like another glass.”