Margaret River
Western Australia's premier maritime wine region, renowned for structured Cabernet Sauvignon, elegant Chardonnay, and crisp Sauvignon Blanc–Semillon blends.
About Margaret River
Margaret River is Australia's most acclaimed maritime wine region, occupying a narrow peninsula between the Indian Ocean and Geographe Bay in the far south-west of Western Australia. Identified in the late 1960s through Dr John Gladstones' research as climatically akin to Bordeaux, the region was pioneered by estates such as Cullen and Leeuwin Estate and registered as an Australian Geographical Indication in 1996. Its hallmark is balance: a Mediterranean climate moderated by the surrounding ocean gives one of the lowest annual temperature ranges of any wine region, ripening fruit slowly and evenly. Gravelly ironstone and granite-derived soils drain freely and lend structure. Cabernet Sauvignon — often Bordeaux-blended — is the flagship, producing firm, cedar-and-cassis reds of real cellaring potential, while Chardonnay reaches world-class refinement and the Sauvignon Blanc–Semillon blend defines the region's whites. Though producing a small share of Australia's volume, Margaret River yields an outsized proportion of its premium wine.
Terroir & regulation
Principal producers
- Cullen Wines
- Leeuwin Estate
- Vasse Felix
- Moss Wood
- Cape Mentelle
Editorial notes
One of the first three Australian wine regions to have boundaries legally defined in the Register of Protected Names (1996). Boundaries were drawn by Dr John Gladstones following his viticultural-suitability research.