John Gerard Wines Mail Order Merchant for Western Australian Wines

The Wine Regions of Western Australia

As a starter we thought you would appreciate a list of the wine regions.

Swan District
Perth Hills
Peel
Geographe
Margaret River
Blackwood Valley
Pemberton
Manjimup
Great Southern

They are listed from North to South, Swan District being the hottest as it is nearest the Equator. These notes are written for UK wine lovers so some of the words may seem like a blinding glimpse of the glaringly obvious (BGOGO) to our Australian customers and those in the UK who know and love Western Australia (WA).

The WA wine region is in the southwest corner so it is not at the westernmost edge of Australia. It is some 2000 miles from the huge wine region of South East Australia, or as far as Portugal is from the Bekaar valley in Lebanon. So you'd expect a different approach to its wines from those found in South East Australia. And the grape varieties grown in WA are numerous ranging from Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay through to Tempranillo and Riesling.

It gets hotter as you go north. So the coolest wine regions are found in the southeast of the area with the hottest just north of Perth, the state capital of Western Australia.

Even the most distant sub-region from Perth, the Great Southern, is at most five hours drive from Perth. From Perth there are two road routes to the Margaret River region. By the way, the wine region, the town and the river are all named Margaret River.

The Road to Margaret River

I think the inland road is the best route; it's only a few miles further inland than the main road yet you'll still pass through the Peel and Geographe regions and there is no shortage of signposts to the vineyards. And if you have read any of the wonderful children's books by May Gibbs featuring Snugglepot and Cuddlepie you'll surely want to stop at the information centre at Harvey, look at the reconstructed Stirling Cottage and also take in a bit of the history of the founding of Western Australia - Philips, Gibbs and Stirling, they're all there. It's only a 3-hour drive to Margaret River from Perth.

Start local

But why not visit the Swan District if you've only a short stopover in Perth?

Cellar Door tastings

Don't be surprised by the increasing practice of a nominal charge for wine tastings. Your charge is refunded if you buy the wine. And if you taste wines that in some cases are rare and old (and expensive, such as some fortified wines) then the winemakers have to cover their costs.

Swan District

This is the home of Houghton Wines' winery. Colonel Houghton's first commercial vintage in the early 1800s was only 24 gallons. Now it produces Australia's best-known blended white wine, Houghton White Burgundy, except that we cannot call it that because of EU legislation, so you will find it as Houghton White Classic. You may still find the odd bottle of Houghton HWB on the shelves. HWB was an interim marketing fad between Houghton White Burgundy and Houghton White Classic. Jack Mann who presided over more than 50 consecutive vintages first made Houghton White Burgundy. Thankfully the name of Jack Mann still lives on with his name on a limited release of Cabernet Sauvignon blends - it's not cheap but it is rare and benefits from long cellaring.

This is also the region to seek out fortified wines, look for John Kosovich Wines and Talijancich Wines. There are other makers of fortified wines, mainly small, but they may have sold out and their wineries might be closed until the next vintage is ready. Hardly any fortified wine is exported as it is all sold in WA. This is the sort of wine to buy to bring home in your hold baggage.

The other wine that is hard, if not impossible, to find in the UK is sparkling wine. Again, WA sparkling wine is bought by the domestic market. Blends of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier are the norm and made in the traditional way. You may find a bottle atHoughton in the Cellar Door (the usual term for the shop at a vineyard, and not every vineyard has one) and it's also one to bring home.

You might also need to be a bit flexible here and stray out to Paul Conti at Woodvale, 30 minutes north of Perth,between the Swan Valley and the coast. So Houghton is large and Paul Conti is small, and a visit to a fortified wine maker should give you a taste of the breadth and depth of the styles of Swan valley wines.

Perth Hills

This This is one of Australia's smallest wine regions according to Ray Jordan. And a copy of his Guide to Western Australian Wine is a must for any wine tourist in WA. As its name suggests The Perth Hills region has a rugged profile as it sits along the Darling Scarp from Chittering to Serpentine. With more than 20 wineries it's worth a few days stay and its climate makes it attractive as an out-of-town domicile for Perth people, you either like the hills or the coast in which case you make for Mandurah which is south of Perth

Peel

Heading south out of Perth I think you need to be adventurous and take the route for Byford, Mundijong, Pinjarra, Waroona, Harvey and thence to Bunbury before heading on to Busselton and on to Margaret River. Busselton has the longest wooden jetty in the world and an underwater observatory at the end of it, and the town is a delightful overnight stop. If you have planned a tour of Margaret River do plan for the each year Leeuwin Estate has an open-air concert and that all accommodation gets booked up well in advance and in some cases a year in advance. As you pass through the Peel region allow for time to stop at any of small number of wineries.

Geographe

Immediately to the north of Margaret River, this is becoming serious wine country. Bunbury used to be a major port associated with the timber trade and it is an easy break, with a good tourist information centre, on the journey to Margaret River. But then the Willow Bridge winery is an interesting stop as is the Capel Vale winery. But you will need to take the road via Dardanup to reach Willow Bridge across rolling fields and a dirt track.

Margaret River

I'd I'd guess that half of WA's winemakers are to be found in this region, and of some 2100 winemakers in Australia over 260 are in WA. Yet WA only produces less than 4% of Australia's wine. So there is a premium on the price of Margaret River wine, justifiably so. Information on where to go and what to see in Margaret River is legion but there are some amazing vineyard restaurants. Pierro is worth a visit simply to see how a small winemaker has reached his apogee and remained there, and his Chardonnays are spoken of in the same breath as Leeuwin Estate.

This was the main region identified by Dr John Gladstones in his groundbreaking study that concluded this was the area exactly suited to Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. Strange to think that he wasn't actually looking for grape-growing country but that was his conclusion.

Now head southeast and be ready for trees - ruddy great big ones.

Blackwood Valley

As you move away from the Margaret River region you find yourself entering timber country, all very scenic. You will be warned by notices of imminent controlled burn-offs (CBOs) where the accumulation of bark and leaves on the ground needs to be burned off to reduce the danger from uncontrolled bushfires. Areas have been cleared to support agriculture,including grapes, and small vineyards can easily be found. It's always worth having a mid-day meal at a vineyard with a cafe or restaurant. Have a look around Nannup, a very small country town with one pub (sorry, hotel) and a winery with a small restaurant by a beautiful dam (that's a small lake to you and I). From here on you can zig-zag your way eastwards with your route based on a whim and whatever takes your fancy. Just be careful at dawn and dusk as that's the time the kangaroos are most often to be seen crossing the road - if you see them in time.

Pemberton

Just Just south of the Blackwood Valley region this is home to some very distinctive wines, Merlot and Chardonnay to mention just a couple. But let's not forget Pinot Noir which is used in many of the excellent sparkling wines made in WA; traditionally made using Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with a little Pinot Meunier.

Named after and centred on the town of Pemberton, this richly timbered region was first planted experimentally in 1977, with commercial vineyards following in 1982, and enjoyed rapid growth in the 1990s.

As a result of the high annual rainfall, a number of vineyards do not use irrigation, but the very pronounced winter and spring dominance can lead to stress if subsoil moisture diminishes late in the growing season. While Manjimup is seen as more suited to the Bordeaux varieties, at Pemberton the focus has moved more towards the Burgundian varieties of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Some 85 percent of the Pemberton region remains under native vegetation with magnificent marri forests in the northern half, moving to karri in the south.

Manjimup

You really mustn't miss a visit to Manjimup itself, a small country town, particularly the Timber Museum. Just why does it have a sleeper on display from the Great Northern Line? And the Roll of those who died in logging accidents is humbling to read.

Great Southern

Well, this is the cool climate region that produces aromatic, herbaceous wines of some delicacy and depth of flavour. Its sub-regions are Albany, Denmark, Frankland River, Mount Barker and Porongorup. The whaling industry finally closed its doors in Albany in 1978 and whale watching has taken over. Mount Barker is another lovely country town and home to Plantagenet Wines. You could then pick up a pppicnic and head east to the Porongorup National Park and take in a couple of wineries. And then head south to Albany and west to Denmark.

The Great Southern is the place to taste several great Rieslings and Pinot Noirs.

Accommodation needs to be booked a few days in advance but local websites are a good place to start looking. And most towns have a Tourist information office that can make bookings for you. You could then head northwest across country and back to Perth.