It had been 15 years since my last visit to the Margaret River wine region and, while the number of wineries has grown from 15 to over 100, very little appears to have changed.

 

In 1989 I hosted a group of 24 on a tour to this "new" wine area.  There was only one motel in Margaret River town; now there must be at least 30 motels or lodges within 10 minutes of the town, and this region is now a huge tourist drawcard in Western Australia.  Located four hours south of Perth, this is a magnet for travellers and the coastline is indeed spectacular. However,  as a wine region it is not visually impressive, and much of the reputation of Margaret River can be attributed to the quality of the wines and the superb food ingredients found in the area.

 

In 1989 there were several wineries with international reputations but at that time few, if any, carried a mega star rating.  Our group in 1989 visited Leeuwin Estate, Vasse Felix, Cape Mentelle and Cullens among a few lesser known labels.  Now these wineries are known all over the world, and it's interesting to see, 15 years on, that these same four wineries still dominate a lot of the international reviews that draw so much attention to the region.

 

Earlier this year I returned to Perth and Margaret River with 26 people keen on finding all about this premium wine region.  The Margaret River business area is about the length of Wellsford but it's an upmarket little town, with at least a dozen restaurants and several wine bars.  There's plenty of café dining so there are numerous of places for tourists to visit in the evenings.  The actual Margaret River is certainly larger than Jacobs Creek but it's only when it gets nearer to the coast that it gets to any reasonable size.  About 10 minutes from the township, the beach area, with its international surfing reputation, is very impressive, and you can see why this coastline attracts people from all over the world.

 

But it was wineries and wine that brought us all the way from New Zealand, and we spent four days finding out why Margaret River carries a premium reputation.  The wine area that carries the Margaret River heritage stretches over approximately 60 kilometres, but even though there are wineries everywhere you don't actually see many from the main roads.  Basically you are driving through vast areas of blue gums, and it's only when you drive through the magnificent gateways do you fine vast stretches of vines and vineyards.  The signposting of the vineyards is very good, and many , are right next door to one another, but it’s not like driving through the Barossa Valley or along the Wairau Valley out of Blenheim - it's trees, not vines, that dominate the skyline.

 

Margaret River's reputation is based around Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon and these two varieties provided us with the best wines we tasted.  There are few bargains to be found, or we didn't find many, and good Chardonnay seemed to start around $25 and work its way upwards.  The better quality Cabernet Sauvignon blends started even higher in price, which was surprising given there seems to be a serious oversupply situation with this noble variety in Margaret River.

 

Shiraz is quite popular but it’s a cool climate style, more akin to the Victorian flavours and certainly nothing like the wines produced in the Barossa or McLaren Vale.  The biggest surprise was the fascination West Australians now have for Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, or various blends of the two varieties.  These wines were everywhere and apparently the wineries cannot keep up with the demand.  To a bunch of Kiwis who can buy a dozen world class Sauvignon Blancs for less than $20, the excitement winemakers had for their local offerings was surprising.  And the prices for these blends were not cheap - $20 to $40 a bottle was common.  On more then one occasion we felt that a boatload of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc juice blended with their highly acidic Semillon would certainly make an appreciative difference.

 

Little Riesling is grown, as most of these grapes are grown three hours further south at Mt Barker, and we tasted the occasional Pinot Noir.  It’s definitely Chardonnay and the Bordeaux red varieties that do best in Margaret River.

 

 

It had been 15 years since my last visit to the Margaret River wine region and, while the number of wineries has grown from 15 to over 100, very little appears to have changed.

 

In 1989 I hosted a group of 24 on a tour to this "new" wine area.  There was only one motel in Margaret River town; now there must be at least 30 motels or lodges within 10 minutes of the town, and this region is now a huge tourist drawcard in Western Australia.  Located four hours south of Perth, this is a magnet for travellers and the coastline is indeed spectacular. However,  as a wine region it is not visually impressive, and much of the reputation of Margaret River can be attributed to the quality of the wines and the superb food ingredients found in the area.

 

In 1989 there were several wineries with international reputations but at that time few, if any, carried a mega star rating.  Our group in 1989 visited Leeuwin Estate, Vasse Felix, Cape Mentelle and Cullens among a few lesser known labels.  Now these wineries are known all over the world, and it's interesting to see, 15 years on, that these same four wineries still dominate a lot of the international reviews that draw so much attention to the region.

 

Earlier this year I returned to Perth and Margaret River with 26 people keen on finding all about this premium wine region.  The Margaret River business area is about the length of Wellsford but it's an upmarket little town, with at least a dozen restaurants and several wine bars.  There's plenty of café dining so there are numerous of places for tourists to visit in the evenings.  The actual Margaret River is certainly larger than Jacobs Creek but it's only when it gets nearer to the coast that it gets to any reasonable size.  About 10 minutes from the township, the beach area, with its international surfing reputation, is very impressive, and you can see why this coastline attracts people from all over the world.

 

But it was wineries and wine that brought us all the way from New Zealand, and we spent four days finding out why Margaret River carries a premium reputation.  The wine area that carries the Margaret River heritage stretches over approximately 60 kilometres, but even though there are wineries everywhere you don't actually see many from the main roads.  Basically you are driving through vast areas of blue gums, and it's only when you drive through the magnificent gateways do you fine vast stretches of vines and vineyards.  The signposting of the vineyards is very good, and many , are right next door to one another, but it’s not like driving through the Barossa Valley or along the Wairau Valley out of Blenheim - it's trees, not vines, that dominate the skyline.

 

 

Vasse Felix is a standout. Highly impressive wines (quite reasonably priced as well), a fabulous restaurant and an excellent retail and souvenir shop.  Ex Kiwi winemaker Clive Otto has been there for 14 years – he misses NZ but he loves the surfing over there.

 

Leeuwin Estate has all the reputation and the quality credentials (they opened 8 Art Series wines for us) and everyone must visit there.  The stage was still in place from the Sting concert, and they recently held a charity dinner for 1700 to raise Tsunami funds, hoping for a million but realising 4.5 million dollars on the night.

 

Cape Mentelle has not changed much, but they offer one of the wider ranges available.  The tasting facilities are a little Spartan, but again you do need to call in if you’re in the area.  The Zinfandel is their standout wine.