Day two, bright and shiny. Actually, somewhat overcast, but did we care? Not a jot!!

For this morning, 9am, we were meeting with Chris Tyrrell, and latest edition to the Tyrrell family, to taste through a few vintages of the Vat 1 Hunter Semillon.

Now not to understate this event, we're talking the finest Semillon in the Hunter, with apologies to Mt Pleasant, which makes it the finest Semillon in the country, indeed the world.

So hung over or not, this was going to be a morning to remember, so long as the kombi starts first go...

Not even a temperamental 35 year old German was going to delay this date with wine perfection, and the Qwoff mobile was as keen as we were.

So we rocked up, and Chris was holding a Semillon Masterclass later that morning, which meant a row of 1998's sitting on the counter, which he was critically eyeing for colour variation.

Damn corks.

But he joined us, we sat around a barrel on the dirt floor of the barrel shed, and got stuck into it.

The 09 was first off the rank, which was great considering our day yesterday, which was all about young Semillons, and 09's in particular.

No label, bottled two days ago, it was tight, yet full of lemony limey promise. At least on par with the Braemore, and with a couple of weeks to settle in the bottle, would be quite lovely.

But what a waste to drink this wine a few weeks old, for it was on to the 2005.

What struck both Justin and myself was how youthful it was. I mean this is a 4 year old white, and it hadn't even begun its journey. The acid was even sharper in the 05 than in the 09, with 2005 being a milder year, and it was so bright and crisp.

Hints of lemon butter were creeping in, and that fuller mouthfeel had begun, with a bit of lanolin.

This was a wine for the ages.

But what was it doing on the market, when traditionally Tyrrell's launch the Vat 1 on the market only with 7 years bottle age.

Funny story. The 05 was accidentally entered in a wineshow, not sure which one, but it was entered in a commercial category, which of course meant it had to be commercially available. I'm sure that hapless cellarhand would have been spit-roasted for the mistake, had not the wine gonged a trophy for best white in show!

So just quietly, the 05 is available, theoretically, though you'll find the 02 more prominently displayed at cellar door!

Anyways, our final breakfast beverage was the unstoppable 1998, the most awarded Australian white wine in history, with 17 trophies, about 39 golds or something like that - so many awards that instead of medals on the bottle, they've just got a black strip with the totals written across it, which is delightfully understated.

Only reason it hasn't won more, Chris suspects, is because of the cork. But the 1998 he has for us has had no cork trouble what-so-ever, I can assure you!

This is the glass slipper of all white wines. This is Grace Kelly. My feeble grasp of the English language is inadequate to describe this wine.

Let me just say that it was a wine experience both Justin and I will never forget, to be talked about when we're 65 on dialysis machines to keep our livers going, reminiscing about the best of the best.

It must be tried to be believed, and I challenge any lover of wines to pick fault in this wine, cork withstanding. And you'd still get another 20 years out of it, that's the unbelievable thing about this wine.

We did not spit. We barely spoke. We just drank, and smiled reverently.

Chris Tyrrell is a charmingly understated guy, young, and certainly he's grown up with this legacy of a wine brand, but there's no arrogance, there's not even a chip that we could see, there's just a clever young guy with a sharp wit and a good sense of humour, trademark country Australian self-deprecation, a passion for wine, and what we read as admirable and moving respect and love for his mum and dad. 

Hats off, Chris, and thanks for your time, and for sharing with us those magnificent gifts to the wine world.

Hope the footy went well (he was off to play union after the masterclass), and we were off then to cook up some Stockton Bite BBQ prawns back at the kombi, with nothing but a squeeze of lime, a dollop of butter, and a sprinkling parsley.

Nothing to distract from the taste of the 2005 we were going to tuck away with lunch.

What a day. What a day...