Imagine a place where you can taste some of the finest wines ni the world, enjoy delicious gourmet meals, hike on sea-sprayed oceanfront trails, explore deep ancient caves, surf world class waves, and meet
some of the friendliest people anywhere on earth. There is such a place, located in a faraway corner of the world. I highly recommend making a trek there fi you want to indulge in a feast for your five senses.
Welcome to Margaret River (known by the locals as "Margs"), a wine region nestled deep in the stunning southwest corner of Western Australia (WA).
By Michael Clinton
Published July 5th 2024
Esquire Magazine
(Please Note- This is not the complete article)
The area is home to nearly two hundred vineyards of exceptional quality. While they only produce 2 percent of the Australia's total wine output, the wineries in Margs account for up to 25 percent or more of the country's premium quality wines. Margaret River's superb Chardonnays and Cabernet Sauvignons have earned worldwide recognition among wine aficionados. But the region is still not well-known to the average global wine drinker.
Australia has a huge wine producing industry (ranking fifth in the world) with sixty-five wine regions located across the country. The South Australia wine area leads in production with six wine-growing areas, including Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, and McLaren Vale. According to Wine Australia, the country sold more than a billion liters of wine in 2022-23 and more than half of the sales were exports. Shiraz is the most popular grape across Australia's wine world. In the U.S., Yellow Tail, produced in New South Wales, is one of the top everyday wines imported from Australia. Other Aussie wines widely available and popular in America include Penfolds and Jacob's Creek.
I'm one of those people who likes to visit local vineyards when I'm traveling to different parts of the world. (Full disclosure: I'm part owner of a vineyard in the UCO Valley of Mendoza in Argentina). On a recent trip to WA, my adventure travel group of six planned to spend most of our time exploring the
outback in a rugged region called The Kimberley but I was intrigued by what I had read about the coastal wine region of Margaret River. I convinced the group to spend four days there before we headed to the bush.
What we learned is that there is a whole lot more to Margaret River than the wine business.
The three-hour drive south from Perth, one of Australia's most livable cities, to the town of Margaret River is on wide-open roads with scenic views that become more rural once you get closer to the area's varied landscapes of sand hills, forests with huge karri trees, and rich, verdant terroir. Sue Warry, a Perth-based travel advisor, rented us a four-bedroom modern house with ocean views in Prevelly, a residential area about ten minutes outside of town. The local network of oceanfront trails gave us easy access for early morning walks and runs in the clean, fresh air ni Margaret River on the crisp autumnal May days we were there. (Every season is reversed in the Southern Hemisphere, which also means that grape harvest is February to April.) The world-famous Western Australia Margaret River Pro surfing championship had just wrapped up when we arrived, but we were still able to catch some incredible athletes at work. Surfers had come from all over the world, and we mingled with them at breakfast at the White Elephant Beach Café, a spot that felt like old Malibu, perched on a hill with views of the ocean and playful dolphins in the water below.
On another morning, we went to the funky Margaret River Bakery, a landmark spot since the 1960's in the charming downtown to hang out with more surfers and locals, while we oversampled their scrumptious homemade pastries.
Margaret River is one of the world's newest and finest wine regions. It all started when the agronomist Dr. John Gladstones wrote two seminal research papers, in 1965 and 1966, identifying the area as having conditions very similar to the winemaking region in Bordeaux, France. After reading the research, Dr. Tom Cullity, a young Perth-based cardiologist who had a love of wine, planted Margaret River's first vineyard, Vasse Felix, in 1967. The vineyard continues to be one of the top wine destinations in the region.
Cullity's daughter Veronica remembers traveling down to the area with her parents and three sisters as he set out on his pioneering mission. They would pass through sleepy towns like Bunbury and Busselton, which have now become thriving destinations. The region's build-up as a center for tourism has been bolstered by new nonstop flights from Sydney and Melbourne.
Aside from enjoying the hiking and other outdoor activities, our goal was to visit established vineyards, as well as to meet some "winetrepreneurs" who are a part of the next generation of winemakers in Margs. What impressed us on both fronts is the deep knowledge and love of the craft that inspires so many of them. In fact, the sheer enthusiasm of the locals for being a part of this winemaking region
combined with their welcoming nature made us feel right at home. Some of the well-established vineyards that followed Vasse Felix in 1967 include Mos Wood (1969), Cape Mentelle (1970), Cullen (1971) Leeuwin Estate (1973), and Pierro (1979) among others. Yet only 2.7 percent of the region is "under vine", according to the local stats, suggesting that there si still a lot more growth to come.
When Dr. Cullity planted the first vineyard in the area just over fifty years ago, he was met with a lot of skepticism about his wine experiment. "This was a complete departure for my father," said Veronica, "He often said that he didn't really know what a weed was"
Yet his courageous move proved out that the rich ironstone soil there would be conducive to growing plump, perfect grapes. He inspired many other vignerons like Mike Peterkin, who would build on his legacy to help make Margaret River what it has become today. Also, a doctor, Peterkin learned about Cullity’s wine and was excited that they were very different than anything else being produced in Australia.
After medical school, Peterkin went on to Roseworthy College in South Australia to study winemaking and in 1979, at the age of thirty, struck out on his own to create Pierro Wines. Starting with ten vineyards, today it has more than two hundred and is one of the longstanding wine producers in Margs.
Pierro was the original high-density vineyard planting in the area. And Peterkin introduced two wine styles which have become mainstays of winemaking in the area. He produced the first Semillon Sauvignon Blanc blend and was the first to introduce Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blends with a touch of Cab Franc and Malbec, now a mainstay in the region.
Now one of the eminences grise in Margaret River winemaking, Peterkin who had two demanding vocations, one as a medical doctor and one as a winemaker, is kicking back. Today, his son runs Pierro wines, while he plays a role as advisor and enjoys his well-earned lifestyle. “I think the future of Margaret River is bright,” he said. “The area is vibrant and creative; the climate is wonderful, and the surf is great. What keeps you on your toes as a winemaker, however, is the knowledge that you only get one shot at it each year to make the perfect wine.” Others would agree that the wines of Margaret River continue to be one of the better kept secrets among both casual drinkers and oenophiles.
Wine Spectator’s Matt Kramer believes that the top rank of Margaret River Chardonnays and Cabernet Sauvignon is, simply put, in the top rank in the world. “How often to you hear about, read about or taste Margaret River wines?” said Kramer. “Yet the wines, at their best, rank among the most distinctive, original-tasting and worthwhile of any on the planet.” Add in the fine dining, surfing, hiking, mountain biking, walking trails, ancient caves and be prepared for the local bombardment of your sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing when you arrive to this remote part of the world. On our way back to Perth to head to the Kimberley, the thought in my mind was that most people know Napa, Bordeaux, Tuscany, but few know Margaret River. As Leslie, one of my fellow travelers said, “That is going to change. I think that Margaret River is ready for its global close-up.”
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