Visiting Margaret River

[Waiters Friend]

G'day

This may sound strange, coming from a Western Australian who drinks and cellars MR wines - but I have not visited MR as a tourist for some years now.

I will be there travelling solo in a couple of weeks, and would like some opinions on where to visit. Also, I will be staying in MR township, so looking for dining options at night as well as winery dining options during the day.

I have events at Howard Park and Cullen already booked, as well as a visit to Fraser Gallop already organised, but would appreciate recommendations outside of those options.

Cheers
Allan

[Andrew Jordan]

Allan,

Love visiting MR. Beautiful location and my favourite wine region in Australia.

Last time we were there we did a whole lot of the smaller wineries like:

Evoi (good value and great wines). Nigel is a great guy as well.
Windows Estate
Hay Shed Hill
Stella Bella (their entry level Cab one of the best QPR in the region)

We found the lunch degustation at Wills Domain the best. Voyager and Leeuwin a close 2nd. Cullen disappointed on so many levels ... lunch degustation was boring and the wines were expensive for what they are. And even though we were having lunch at Cullen they still wanted to charge us a tasting fee at the cellar door. All the other wineries waived this. Hope your experience is better than ours.

Woodlands is always a must visit for me.

Hope this helps.

Regards

[Ian S]

It's been too long since we've visited, but it looks like MR venison is still there, and we did enjoy their cured meats. IIRC it's farmed (not wild) Venison, but it seemed to be sensibly farmed.

It was relatively early days for the rebirth of Woodlands, but even in their modest (at the time) tasting room, their energy (and the wines) shone.

We still have our 'bunyip' teapot from (IIRC) Wilyabrup dreaming, and I recall fondly the impromptu conversation I and the potter struck up, about the elusive creatures and their haunting call. We riffed off each other to the point that my partner started to doubt her understanding that they're fictional creatures . It's a big old pot that makes a satisfying glugging sound when poured.

I always loved the setting of Woody Nook, but sadly the wines rarely impressed.

Not all the roads were sealed, with a few red dirt roads (but they were well maintained)

[Rocky]

Book a tasting at Woodlands.

[Sean]

Leeuwin Estate - You can book a back vintage tasting of the Art Series Chardonnay or Cab.
I just did it at the tasting bench with the current release wines.
Stunning vineyard & gave me a much better understanding of the Chardonnay in particular.

Xanadu - Run through the premium Chardonnays & Cabs, ie. Estate, Boodjidup Brook, Stevens Rd & Reserve.
These are expensive wines, so the tasting fee is worth it. The staffer will probably pour a couple more anyway.
You can also try some museum wines there.
Joined the mailing list to get access to all of them.

Really enjoyed the experience at the cellar door of both.

Also the wines are so good right now.

[WAwineguy]

Pretty hard to go past sitting on the balcony at Leeuwin Estate having a superb lunch overlooking the beautiful gum trees, while sipping exquisite back vintages of Art Series Chardonnay.

There are some fabulous craft breweries down there, and Ginversity is worth a visit if you like your gin and whiskies.

And for us, watching the waves crash on the beach at Prevelly is a pilgrimage every time we go down. For breakfast, White Elephant cafe at Gnarabup beach is easily the best place to visit.

For a great casual evening meal Settlers Tavern on the main street of town is great value for money, excellent food, friendly staff and a wine list you will never see in any up market city pub, including many back vintages of local wines and excellent vintage champagne. You will need to book on a weekend.