Shiraz was the highlight of the evening, but we had to start with the Chardonnay. Just as well because it did a wonderful duet with the chili-spiked prawn cakes that I was having for starters. And, this was the Chardonnay after all that jumpstarted Australia’s love affair with Burgundy’s signature white grape variety—and racked up another achievement for one of Australia’s iconic winemaking families.

One (perhaps) moonlit night, Murray Tyrrell jumped his neighbor’s fence and swiped enough Chardonnay vine cuttings (just about 1,000) to plant in his own vineyard. That was how Tyrrell’s Vat 47 Chardonnay was born, its release marking the introduction of Australian Chardonnay to the world market. Enamored with the white Burgundies that he so enjoyed drinking but found too expensive, Murray decided to make his own Chardonnay—from those cuttings that he had appropriated from across the fence. It is ironic that his grandfather eventually bought that neighbor’s vineyard, related Chris Tyrrell. Assistant winemaker since 2005, Chris is the fifth-generation Tyrrell involved in the family wine business that was established in 1858. He was in Manila recently, part of his Asian circuit to conduct a tasting of the Tyrrell’s range. I was fortunate to get invited to I’m  Angus Steakhouse—the day before the tasting—for a preview of the top three wines in the lineup: Vat 47 Chardonnay, Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz and the curiously-named Lunatiq.

The Tyrrell family is deeply rooted in the Hunter Valley. Deeper still is its link with the Australian wine industry as a whole. In 1973 Tyrrell’s was the first winery in Australia to mature Chardonnay in new French 300-liter oak barrels. A Tyrrell’s 1976 Pinot Noir made the cover of Time Magazine in 1979, when it won top honors in the Paris Wine Olympics. And while Murray’s pioneering efforts with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir led to the introduction of these two varieties to the modern Australian wine industry, he was also the leading champion of Sémillon, the grape responsible for Hunter Valley’s signature white wine. From the original 60 acres in the Hunter Valley, Tyrrell’s vineyards—mainly Sémillon, Shiraz and Chardonnay—now cover about 900 acres that have expanded into other prime grape growing regions in McLaren Vale, Limestone Coast and Heathcote. Tyrrell’s Wines is now headed by Bruce Tyrrell, Murray’s son and fourth-generation family member, making  Chris (the youngest of three siblings) the fifth-generation Tyrrell to be involved in the family business.

What does it feel like—talking about wines that bear your family name?

Uncomfortable...at first, replied Chris, not missing a beat from his medium-rare steak with béarnaise sauce. From the creamy, subtly flinty 2006 Vat 47 Chardonnay and the appetizers (Thai prawn cakes and bacon-wrapped scallops) we were now into the Tyrrell’s reds: the Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz 2008 and the Lunatiq Heathcote Shiraz 2009. Both wines demonstrate how one grape, Shiraz, takes on a different personality because of the soil and climate where it is grown—and winemaking. Rich black fruit flavors laced with ground black pepper and a long chocolate-y finish marked the Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz. I found the Lunatiq as powerful, but with softer tannins and a ribbon of acidity wrapped around more complex layers of the same black fruit, sweet spice and mocha. Unlike the Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz (matured for 18 months in American oak), the Lunatiq benefited from a unique oak regimen—after 12 months in new French oak, the wine was again transferred into new French barriques for another eight months.

When the Tyrrell family bought land to start vineyards in Heathcote, Central Victoria, we were called all sorts of names, including “lunatic,” hence the name for the Lunatiq Shiraz, explained Chris. There was also the tradition of giving their top red its first clarifying rack three lunar phases after the harvest, under the clear light of the moon—states the explanation on the wine’s back label. Where he used to be uncomfortable talking about the wines that bore his family name (when he was in sales and marketing), Chris now talks about them with the enthusiasm of one who is clearly passionate about winemaking. We go to great lengths to achieve quality, he said, beaming at the compliments for the Vat 47, the Rufus Stone and the Lunatiq.

Outside, the moon was beaming brightly too.

Vinofile

·      Tyrrell’s Vat 47 Chardonnay 2006—P3,105 (2007 vintage available)

·      Rufus Stone McLaren Vale Shiraz 2008—P1,179

·      Lunatiq Heathcote Shiraz 2009—P2,278

• Tyrrell’s Wines are available at all Santïs branches and exclusively distributed by Werdenberg International Corp: 7431 Yakal St., San Antonio Village, Makati City. Call 840-3771 to 82, www.werdenberg.com.