The lowdown on Australia's Margaret River wine region
Margaret River is the name of a wine region, a small town and - not surprisingly - a river in Western Australia. Records show that Margaret River draws more than 500,000 visitors a year - that's 50 times its 10,000 population; the equivalent of Hong Kong receiving 350 million visitors every year. And why not? Margaret River is a region of rugged, untamed coastlines, massive Karri trees, spectacular surf breaks and superlative wineries. Even humpback whales like to make an annual tourist jaunt along the Margaret River coastline.
Located about 290km south of Perth, the region is presumed to have been named after Margaret Wyche, a cousin of John Garrett Bussell, who is the founder of nearby Busselton. In the early days, both towns were anything but bustling, although by 1910, Margaret River did sport the obligatory pub, which also operated as the town's hotel and post office. Margaret River only came into its own recently, when the region began to attract global accolades for its elegant cabernet sauvignon wines.
The region has an astonishing reputation given its first commercial vines were planted in 1967 and the district was officially registered only in 1996. That vines were planted in Margaret River at all is due to a government report prepared by renowned viticulturalists Harold Olmo and Dr John Gladstone,
who professorially declared: 'All known theoretical considerations point to a very good potential indeed.'
Geographically, Margaret River is one of Australia's largest wine regions, running roughly 120km from north to south and 30km from east to west. Although seemingly substantial in size, Margaret River produces only 3 per cent of Australia's grapes, which makes it all the more impressive that it supplies more than 20 per cent of the nation's premium wine.
While many grape varieties are grown here, the district is renowned for its chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon wines, similar to California's Napa Valley.
Other red varieties include shiraz and merlot while whites include excellent semillon, sauvignon blanc,
chenin blanc and verdelho.
Margaret River is unofficially sub-divided into six districts. The bulk of the vineyards and wineries are in Wilyabrup, a sub-region near the coastline, and Wallcliffe, which is south of the river. Other sub-regions include Yallingup in the north; Carbunup in the northwest; Treeton, which is northeast of the town; and Karridale in the south. It can't be a coincidence that three of these sub-districts end with 'up'; the producers in Margaret River should indeed be feeling 'up', given the high reputation of their wines and the prices they command on international markets.
The Margaret River producers must also be a healthy bunch as many of its top wineries were established by wine-loving medicos. Dr Tom Cullity founded the region's first winery, Vasse Felix; Dr Kevin Cullen and wife Di, Cullen Wines; Dr Bill Parnell and his wife, Moss Wood; and Drs Eithne and John Lagan, Chateau Xanadu. Ownership has changed hands in some cases, but these early vineyards set the stage for Margaret River cabernet sauvignon. The most highly regarded chardonnay producers include Pierro, Brookland Valley and Leeuwin Estate.
