I’m just back from Margaret River, my first trip to the region, in fact my very first trip to Australia. I had to go; it’s been quoted to me as the most Bordeaux wine region of Australia – famous for its Cabernet Sauvignon, close to the ocean.  It was a mother and son trip, with Edward scouting out new wines for Mauritius.

Three of the things I most love writing about were here in spades: sustainability, women wine makers and wine tourism – all in one place. I’ll cover them all over the next few posts, but want to start with an introduction to the region and it’s wines. 

A sense of place. 

Margaret River is a tiny part of the Australian wine scene, just 2% of national production. It claims to be one of the most isolated wine regions of the world, I can believe it, it takes some getting to, but is so worth it. Surrounded by the ocean, it has a unique geography and micro climate,  juxtaposed on some of the oldest soils of the planet, yet it’s new to wine production which imbues the place with a sense of dynamism and excitement. 

Where? 

Tucked into the south west corner of Australia, Margaret River enjoys a Mediterranean and a maritime climate – surely the best of both worlds for vines? About  300km south of Perth on the west coast, the vineyards are on a ‘heel’ sticking out into the Indian and Southern Oceans. Surrounded by water on three sides, this unique location brings cooling sea breezes. In the afternoons, we felt the famous ‘Fremantle Doctor’ blow through the vines, balancing the hot weather of the growing season. The warm Leeuwin Coastal Current brings much needed (at least this year) winter rains. All contributing to the elegance of wines we tasted.

The vineyards run along a narrow (27km wide) 110 km long strip from Cape Naturaliste in the north to Cape Leeuwin in the south. The GI (Geographical Indication) region covers 213,000 ha of which only 3% are under vine: 5,840 hectares (720 organic). 

It’s one of the most important biodiversity hotspots on Earth. 46% of the region is cloaked in unspoiled, remnant vegetation; an abundant forest and bushland of native trees, shrubs and grasses, with impressive caves. An endemic flora and fauna has been cared for by the traditional owners, the Wadandi People, for over 50,000 years. It’s certainly not monoculture, as well as indigenous forest and vines there are cows, mainly very handsome Black Angus, sheep and lots of wild kangaroos. 

A river runs through it 

The Margaret River divides the region east to west. With local Sean Blocksidge of The Margaret Discovery Company, we canoed up it, which I highly recommend, despite water levels being low due to an exceptional early start to summer and no rain at all throughout the growing season. 

What’s in a name?

The region has been lived in for tens of thousands of years by the Wadandi. A lot of place names end in ‘up’ (Cowaramup, Willabrup), of Aboriginal origin meaning ‘place of’.

Geographe Bay and Cape Naturalist to the north take their names from French ships arriving via Mauritius in the early 1800s. Vasse is named after a poor soul who apparently fell overboard – his fate remains a mystery – or legend depending upon who you talk to. 

Scientific discovery 

Pioneering European settlers in the 1830’s lived from forestry and dairy farming. Western Australia (WA) wine making started further north in the Swan River Colony near Perth. In 1955, Dr Harold Olmo, Professor of Viticulture at University California Davis, was invited to assess the potential for viticulture here. His conclusions compared the region favourably to the best Australia and California had to offer, but it was local Agronomist, Dr John Gladstones, who is hailed as the viticultural hero of the region. In the 1960s he declared  Margaret River and Busselton as having ‘excellent potential’, highlighting Cowaramup-Bramley and Witchcliffe-Forest Grove as grape growing hot spots. This was welcome news to struggling farmers at the time desperately looking to diversify. 

Many of the wine pioneers were Doctors. In 1966, Gladstones advised Dr Kevin Cullen, a local GP and his wife Diana to plant grapes. Inspired, Cullen organised a public meeting where Gladstones encouraged other locals to join the movement. In 1967, British doctor Tom Cullity planted Margaret River’s first commercial vineyard, Vasse Felix. In 1969,  Dr Bill Pannell from Royal Perth Hospital, planted Moss Wood and Cullen planted his own eponymous vineyard in 1971, followed by Irish Dr John Lagon at Xanadu in 1977. Why so many doctors? An affinity for fine wine and its possible health benefits? A scientific background? Or perhaps a tax break – this was hinted at, but I haven’t found confirmation. (If you know the answer please share below.)

1980s recognition 

By 1980 there were 20 vineyards in the area, producing quality that was already attracting attention with wines Cape Mentelle (planted in 1970) and Leeuwin Estate (planted in 1973)  winning major competitions including Decanter Magazine’s international Chardonnay Tasting where  Leeuwin Estate ‘Art Series’ 1981 Chardonnay was the highest rated wine. They’re still winning. Today 200 vineyards are enjoying phenomenal success in a relatively short period. 

Ancient earth, young at heart 

What is the soil that makes the region so suitable for vines? There are ten main soils to choose from, a diversity that explains the array of grape varieties and wine styles. They are dominated by deep, well-drained, red gravelly loams over granite and gneiss, perhaps the oldest of the Earth’s viticultural regions. The granite bedrock of the ridge is 150–600 million years old, layered with two-million-year-old limestone!

Traditionally, the native vegetation has guided grape growers. Jarrah, Marri and Karri trees indicate loam-gravel great for vines, but don’t plant where the peppermint trees grow. This intuitive knowledge is now replaced by more scientific soil studies with viticulture programmes adapted to the variability of soil type at a row and block level, embracing the benefits of the latest research.

Vines are planted from  0–231m above sea level, for every 100 metres increase in elevation, there’s a temperature decrease of 0.6°C and a 1% increase in ultraviolet radiation. The Dunsborough Faultline, runs the full length of the region, dividing it into two. To the west, lies 83 000 ha of the Leeuwin Complex (although only a tiny amount is under vine). Its ironstone ridge, higher elevations (40 -100 metres) streams and valleys are home to two-thirds of Margaret River’s vineyard, planted on lateritic ironstone gravels that are unique to the region and ideal for vines, especially Cabernet. They account for over 40 % of all plantings in Western Australia (WA). To the east, the Perth Basin Complex, is lower-lying, sedimentary rock of sand, silt and shale. 

Gladstones Lines

Dr John Gladstones offered a set of recommendations for delineating the Margaret River Wine Region in June 1994. His proposal was accepted and, in 1996, Margaret River became one of the first three wine regions in Australia to have its boundaries legally defined with Geographical Indicators. The good doctor has a line of longitude named after him. The Gladstones Line runs north to south forming the eastern boundary of the Margaret River Wine Region. In 1999, he went further suggesting the potential to divide Margaret River into six sub-regions based on climate and soil differences. These unofficial areas are Yallingup, Carbunup, Wilyabrup, Treeton, Wallcliffe and Karridale. In 2017 a group of wineries tried to establish, ‘Wilyabrup’ as a GI. Although the project was abandoned, it seems common agreement that the ‘Wilyabrup Dirt’ is considered the magical land of Cabernet. For Bordeaux lovers, I’m tempted to compare it to Pauillac. The similarity to the Médoc peninsula doesn’t end there. There are two principal roads up and down the 110km region. Busselton highway and Caves road, reminds me of the D2, as you drive past many famous names of the region.  The name is not inspired by the French word for cellars but by the huge and spectacular caves (well worth a visit), created in the limestone bedrock by underground rivers and water infiltration.

Bio diversity 

The geographical isolation gives Margaret River (Margs to its friends) a unique, and fiercely protected, biodiversity. Anyone who has flown to Australia (or NZ) will know how they put the fear of god into you about bringing in anything vaguely agricultural, plant based or even mud on your shoes before you disembark. We saw visitors who wandered amongst the vines being shooed back to the path, so paranoid are they about contamination. Understandable when you know this is area of Australia that has never seen the ravages of Phylloxera, with all vineyards grown on their own root systems.

Grape Varieties 

Vines are planted to 60% white and 40% red, dominated by about 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Sauvignon Blanc, 17% Chardonnay, 16.5% Sémillon and 14% Shiraz. The remainder a mix of other reds and white – but white dominates – underlying the cool maritime climate really works for the region. 

The secret to Cabernet’s reign lies with Dr Gladstones, when he identified Margaret River’s gravel soils and proximity to the ocean as ideal growing conditions for the variety. The oldest vines were planted in the 60s and 70s, with some of the original Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec plantings still growing. The 1970s saw the first Chardonnay vines planted at Leeuwin Estate, Cullen Wines and Moss Wood, pioneers that remain a force in the region today. 

Most vineyards are grown from cuttings, ‘massal selection’, from existing vineyards. Margaret River is proud of their high-quality, heritage clones of Gingin (Chardonnay) and Houghton (Cabernet Sauvignon). Minimal intervention viticulture aims to produce fruit that expresses terroir, there’s an exciting adoption of sustainable, organic and biodynamic viticulture that I’ll talk about in more detail in a future post. 

From Chardy party to Savalanche 

The two flagship varieties remain, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. As delicious as the Chardonnay is, mainly bright and crisp rather than oaky and heavy, with my Bordeaux bias for Sémillon- Sauvignon blends, I was thrilled to taste some fabulous examples. Australians love to abbreviate everything (see Margs), a memorable example was a local explaining how they had left the ‘Chardy Party’ to join the ‘Savalanche’! It’s catching, by the end of our stay we were asking if blends were  Sem/Sav or Sav/Sem? It’s easy to identify: SBS is a Sauvignon Blanc dominated version of the blend SSB Sémillon dominated – nothing like keeping it simple.

Shiraz or Syrah? 

Cabernet is the traditional hero variety but it’s not alone, I loved the way producers called their Syrah wine Shiraz or Syrah depending upon the style they were looking to produce, big and bold or elegant, often alternating between the two for different cuvées 

Wine making – where the fun really starts

The region is dominated by artisan, mainly family wineries, with over 60% of producers crushing less than 50 tonnes of fruit (approx. 4,000 cases). It’s a close-knit community, regularly organising tastings amongst themselves, sharing knowledge and experience. International blind tastings for Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay are held at Cape Mentelle and Cullen Wines each year, keeping them on their toes and open to new ideas and influences.

They are really proud and passionate about their region, there’s still an energy of the new and adventurous. Winemakers may draw on classic wine regions for technique but it’s the local environment that inspires them, keeps them flexible and gives them permission to experiment.

Minimalist viticulture is reflected in a hands-off low-intervention approach in the cellar too. Alcohol levels were 15% at the highest, elegantly balanced by the freshness from the maritime influence and thanks to low intervention wine making. Signature techniques are natural fermentation with indigenous yeasts and restrained use of oak. We saw lots of large 500l ‘puncheons’ preferring second use to new oak and experiments with alternative techniques including whole berry fermentation and fermenting and aging in amphorae. It’s all a bit rock and roll – as were the sound tracks in the wineries during harvest! 

Keeping it local

Just 10% of Margaret River wines are exported, they have a loyal following of domestic collectors and drinkers. If you’re in USA, UK or Singapore, the leading export markets, you’re in with a change of finding the wines. Over 100 cellar doors are open to the public, offering a huge range of wine and food tasting experiences and delicious restaurants. Door sales are an important part of the economic model with successful and fun wine clubs, thanks to the range of wines produced, original marketing and label design.

Go visit

The region offers a warm and relaxed welcome. With 130 kms of stunning coastline, you’re never far from the ocean and the cool hippy vibe of barefoot surfers and beach front cafés. The wineries, breweries and distilleries, stunning natural environment, arts and events scene all attract over 1.5 million overnight visitors per year. We were there at the end of an exceptionally early harvest, but it really didn’t feel busy. We stayed in Dunsborough and Busselton. The restaurant and food scene is amazing, if you’re driving down to self-catering accommodation call in at Bunbury farmers market for delicious local produce.

I can’t recommend visiting Margaret River highly enough. Make sure you’re signed up for further blog posts to learn why, meet some of the amazing wine makers and discover wines we loved.

If you enjoyed this post,   please  sign up here  to receive future blog posts directly to your inbox and share with a friend. If you would like to read more about Bordeaux, find your copy of Bordeaux Bootcamp here, and learn about Wine and Wellness, with  The Drinking Woman’s Diet . Youn can read more of my stories from Bordeaux at Decanter. Interested in working with me? Contact me here.