What You Should Know About Margaret River Wines
I love the Wine Regions of Western Australian. I especially love the majestic beauty of the Margaret River. The pristine white beaches that disappear into the horizon. Try to envisage the rolling sand dunes that are home to the occasional outburst of native forest. Come and see it for yourself. There is nothing like a western sunset that gently glimmers and falls into the lazy Indian Ocean.. It’s no wonder this amazing place is home to so many praised wine producers. This is a beautiful place that produces some of Australia’s best wine.
The Margaret River region is without doubt one of our greatest fine wine areas boasting over 120 wine producers. Local names such as Moss Wood, Cullen and Leeuwin Estate sit comfortably among the greatest Australian producers, with their wines highly sought after both domestically and overseas.
The winemakers here aim to make wines that will stand up to the great wines of the world. Delivering brilliance in each and every bottle of wine they produce.
Quality Wines have been coming from Leeuwin Estate, Moss Wood, Vasse Felix, Cullen, Cape Mentelle, Howard Park and Pierro for a long time. They have collectively been responsible for producing the region’s greatest wines.
These guys should be keeping a close eye on the wine coming from Woodlands and the newly revitalised Xanadu wineries. Another rising star is Voyager Estate.
The original vines of what is now Voyager Estate were first planted in 1978, under the name of Freycinet Estate. These vineyards, in 1991, were bought and considerably expanded on. The area is now become known as the ‘Golden triangle of Chardonnay’ due to the amazing quality of the wines from produced here.
The current releases from Voyager Estate include three absolute knockouts. I recommend you try them all:
1. The Voyager Chardonnay 2006 ($35) has powerful white peach and citrus fruit on a taut and youthful palate with a little creamy leesy complexity and brilliant length. It is one of the best 2006 Margaret River Chardonnays.
2. A favourite, at least for enjoying now, is the 2005 Shiraz ($35). Generally the Margaret River doesn’t make standout Shiraz, but this is a wonderful example of dense cool climate Shiraz with clove and blackberry fruit lifted by hints of violets and liquorice. In the mouth there is such a youthful feel and plenty of vitality that it will only get better over the next decade.
3. Best known of the wines from Voyager Estate is their Cabernet Merlot ($60), with the 2004 release one of their best to date. This wine is really built for the long term. You will love the taste of the gravelly cassis and blackberry fruit. All this is rounded out with subtle notes of olive and oak wood. In the mouth there is a gentle burst of fruit all tide up with in a significant, bold like structure. In ten to fifteen years it will be a wonderful drop, so keep it sleeping for a while, if you can.
