One of Australia’s top wine-producing regions, Margaret River, proves life really is a cabernet… or perhaps a chardonnay.
It’s known for its picturesque landscape of undulating bush and beautiful beaches, but Margaret River’s reputation is built on wine. The first vineyard was established at Vasse Felix in 1967 and the first wave of plantings took place over the next decade, with Cape Mentelle, Cullen, Leeuwin Estate, Moss Wood and Vasse Felix quickly gaining a reputation for outstanding wines.
By the mid-1980s, cabernet sauvignon and chardonnay were established as the varieties most likely to produce world-class wines from the Margaret River region. Nothing has happened since then that would alter that view.
To win a second trophy at the Decanter World Wine Awards, newcomer Fraser Gallop had to beat trophy winners from Bordeaux, the Napa, South Africa, Chile and New Zealand. Certainly in blind tastings and wine shows, Margaret River cabernets have performed extremely well. Few would deny a world ranking to Cape Mentelle, Cullen Diana Madeline, Moss Wood, Sandalford Prendiville, Vasse Felix Heytesbury and Woodlands.
The situation with chardonnay is even tighter, although few would challenge Leeuwin’s pre-eminence and its ability to look very good alongside the best of Burgundy. The established order gives top rating to Brookland Valley, Cape Mentelle, Cullen, Devil’s Lair, Pierro, Vasse Felix Heytesbury, Voyager and Woodlands. I suspect Xanadu will force its way into that group from the 2008 vintage.
In the past five years or so, many of the newish wineries in the Margaret River region have drawn attention to themselves, including Chapman Grove for its Atticus chardonnay, Fraser Gallop, and Flametree for its cabernet merlot.
David Hohnen at Cape Mentelle and Mike Peterkin at Cullen and Pierro made blends from semillon and sauvignon blanc in the early 1980s, and by the mid-1990s they were firmly established as a regional style. Although these will never be world-class wines, a small coterie of winemakers is crafting a wooded style of semillon sauvignon blanc with the intent of making serious whites. Try Pierro, Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe, Cullen Mangan, Fraser Gallop and Stella Bella Suckfizzle.
Because they’re quite new to the region, you should try the opulent end of the region’s cellar doors at Laurance and Saracen. The latter incorporates the Duckstein Brewery and a family restaurant. McHenry Hohnen is opening its cellar door west of the town in December, and more modest family cellar doors to visit include Pierro, Clairault, Lenton Brae, Edwards and Cape Grace.
Margaret River also has a fine collection of winery restaurants. At Vasse Felix, chef Aaron Carr shows longevity and cutting-edge food are not mutually exclusive. Don’t miss young Kiwi chef Brad Hornby’s degustation at the new Knee Deep, or Matt Egan’s organic, bio-dynamic, gluten-free and free-range produce at Cullen Wines, where the philosophy of the winery is also apparent in its restaurant.
Recommended drops
2007 Fraser Gallop Cabernet Sauvignon $30
Fraser Gallop won the Bordeaux Blend over £10 International Trophy at the recent Decanter Awards. Deep, opulent and powerfully concentrated with lush blackcurrant and bramble flavours, balancing silky fine-grain tannins.
2007 McHenry Hohnen Rolling Stone $36
This bold, innovative red is a blend of malbec, cabernet sauvignon, merlot and petit verdot. It has the makings of a local classic thanks to a plush, fleshy texture and seamless integration of oak, tannin and rich dark plum and blackberry flavours.
2008 Knee Deep Shiraz $26
A good showing at the Sheraton Awards (with a gold medal for the 2008 shiraz) has focused attention on consultant Bob Cartwright’s wines. This medium-bodied red has good intensity of mulberry and dark plum flavours; it is succulent, vibrant, silky smooth and gently grippy.
2007 Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon $37
This trophy winner is the 36th release of Margaret River’s first cabernet. Extremely youthful, thus benefiting from vigorous swirling, it has a velvet texture with
exuberant, ultra-concentrated blackcurrant flavours balanced by finesse and elegance.
Source: Qantas The Australian Way November 2009