Ampersand Estates – we should have it all
By Dr Craig Drummond, Master of Wine It is always exciting to review new wines and indeed a...
wine review
Fermoy – an established quality producer
It is indeed a pleasure to again review the wines of this great Margaret River producer. Since my first article in 2012, they have continued to climb the quality ladder. Read More...
Marq of distinction
Mark Warren is a champion of the lesser known varieties in Margaret River. Varieties such as Gamay, Vermentino, Fiano, Grenache and Tempranillo have
all found their way to his Yallingup winery. Read More...
Sandalford, wines for the ages
In 1840, John Septimus Roe, Western Australia’s first Surveyor General was granted 4000 acres of riverbank land at West Swan. He named it Sandalford after a priory in his English home at Berkshire. The property became prosperous as an agrarian estate supporting crops, cattle, fruit and vegetables and vines for table grapes, sultanas, raisins, currants and wine grapes. Early varieties planted were Shiraz, Verdelho, Cabernet Sauvignon and Frontignac. Export markets were established by Roe’s grandson John Frederick Roe, who had taken a keen interest in the fertile soils of the Swan River. Read More...
Below and Above
Vines above. Truffles below. Images of karri forest, cool-cimate misty mornings, open fires spring to mind. Thella Estate is both a serious truffle grower and a premium wine producer. Read More...
West Cape Howe shows Great Southern quality
From humble beginnings in 1997 in the Denmark sub-region, West Cape Howe has since grown to be a major WA producer of quality wines. Its success can be largely attributed to two of the four ownership partners – manager Gavin Berry, who has vast winemaking experience in the region, and adept viticulturist Rob Quenby. Read More...
Frankland’s next gen winners
An isolated vineyard in an isolated corner of WA, 330km south of Perth, Frankland Estate was born in 1988. Sheep farmers Barrie Smith and Judi Cullam planted vines in the “coffee rock” soil – ironstone gravel over a clay subsoil. And the vineyard’s name? Isolation Ridge, naturally. Read More...
Duke’s legacy for a new era
The Porongurups are one of our State’s great natural treasures, and planted at the foot of this ancient granite range is the Duke’s Vineyard, a part of the Great Southern Wine Region. Read More...