Are good. As a group of good friends and I discovered this past weekend at a birthday weekender down in this glorious little wine region with such a big reputation. Of course I’ve liked Margaret River wines for a long time, but perhaps didn’t have a full appreciation for the beauty and finesse of good Cabernet and Chardonnay.
Specifically the Cabernet from Moss Wood, where we were given a great tour by wine maker Josh Bahen (cheers Max!) and had a chance to try some of the blended 07 Cabernet, and unblended batches of the 08 Cabernet Sauvignon. A great experience and also a learning opportunity for most of us (well some of us, who weren’t trying to get drunk by 11am).
Of course, it is hard to maintain an air of sophisticated wine appreciation when you are being chauffeured around the place in a limousine while wearing novelty hats… but I think we almost managed to pull it off.
Other stand outs were the Grenache from Moss Brothers, the 07 Chardonnay and 05 Cabernet from Hay Shed Hill, 07 Riesling from Clairault, 04 Cape Grace Cabernet, and 07 Lenton Brae Semillon Sauvignon Blanc.
Of course the region is not just about Cabernet and Chardonnay. It’s increasingly becoming know for producing excellent Semillion and Sauvignon Blanc blends, and there are many a great drinking Shiraz to be found as well.
If you haven’t been for a tour and you live in W.A… shame on you :)
Matt,
Very evocative pictures, especially if you are a wino and have gone a few days without a drink!
Despite getting busier, it is still one of my favourite places to visit.
Regarding the food in the last image – is that from Winos?
A few days without a drink !?! Perish the thought Edward ! Maybe you need to see a doctor… oh wait ;) I loved the feel of the smaller places we went to the most I think. Being able to chat casually and get some insight into why the wine was made in a particular style. I now have a much better understanding of French vs American oak… and why tight grained medium toast barrels from Tronçais are so good.
The food was indeed from Wino’s. We had quite a great meal there. Though two corked bottles of LZ Rioja (for the Spanish wine loving birthday girl) were a bit of a let down.
If you keep taking such sickeningly good shots mate, I’ll never hook up another winery visit for you again pal – you’re setting the bar way too high for the rest of us West Australian bloggers!
Glad to hear you had fun though chief!
Mate, I’ll start taking crappy shots if you can hook up a few more back stage passes :) We had a great time indeed… Not to be outdone by Moss Wood, the Moss Brothers down the road also took us out the back and gave us barrel samples of their next release Grenache from a giant Hungarian oak barrel… Bottles are so over rated :)