WA Wine Review 2027

Margaret River

Shiraz

The colour is a pale salmon pink, while the nose is a bright combination of strawberries, spice and a splash of cranberry. The palate is crunchy and light-bodied, yet delivers impressive flavour intensity. It finishes crisp, fine and refreshing, making it ideal for current drinking. A terrific modern Australian rosé made from shiraz.

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

A mighty challenge to follow the stellar 2022 and 2023 releases under this label, yet this comes remarkably close. It ticks every box for quality cabernet sauvignon. As has become the house style, there's wonderful elegance, poise and structure. Black currant, bay leaf, black olive and subtle oyster shell minerality create a compelling and complex aromatic opening. The sleek palate...

Margaret River

Malbec

The warmer season seems to have suited this variety particularly well. It's predominantly malbec with a 10% contribution of cabernet sauvignon, providing structural support through the middle palate. The nose is intensely concentrated with spicy, chocolatey aromas layered over bright red fruits. The palate is plush and generous with rich plummy flavours and a touch of dark chocolate richness. It...

Margaret River

Chardonnay

Another cracking chardonnay with delightful purity, minerality and bright floral notes on the nose. It was barrel fermented with wild yeasts before spending nine months in oak, during which the barrels were stirred regularly. The result is a wine of impressive complexity, evident in the subtle cereal notes on the palate, complemented by oyster shell minerality and light stone fruit...

Margaret River

Shiraz

A bright, generous, lively, medium-bodied shiraz with loads of plummy black fruits and a lift of cherry-dominated red fruits. There's a hint of spice and a sprinkle of pepper. The palate is soft and supple, with fine yet supportive tannins. Plenty of rich flavour is crammed into its medium-bodied frame, and the finish is effortlessly long. Mighty good value Margaret...

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

It's a marvellous wine from a marvellous vintage. It's medium to full-bodied, but it's deeply concentrated with powerful blackcurrant, bay leaf, and a little olive tapenade complexity. The aroma lifts from the glass with beautiful floral aromatics. The palate is controlled, neatly integrated with fine chalky tannins, and well-managed oak holding the line, carrying it through to a sustained finish....

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

A thoroughly brilliant example of the ’23 vintage in Wilyabrup. The unmistakable aromas of blackcurrant with a lift of violets, crushed berries and oodles of dark, syrupy chocolate spell out Wilyabrup. The palate is medium-bodied, but my oh my, there is some deep, concentrated fruit here. It’s brilliant and bright with a firm thread of chalky tannins and precisely integrated...

Margaret River

Chardonnay

A most impressive young chardonnay that delivers exceptional finesse and refinement. There's all the power and intensity expected of Margaret River chardonnay, yet it's expressed with admirable restraint and poise. Lemon curd and stone fruit nuances emerge on the nose before a palate that is textural and rich while remaining tightly focused. It will certainly reward extended cellaring, although it's...

Margaret River

Chardonnay

This is one of the finest chardonnays yet released from Wills Domain. The excellent 2025 vintage has clearly been fully realised. Aromas of light cashew, stone fruit and lemon curd introduce a palate that is exquisitely integrated, powerful and impressively linear. A fine thread of mineral tension drives the wine through its long, focused finish. Beautifully composed now, but it...

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

A wine that beautifully combines power with refinement. Predominantly cabernet sauvignon, it's complemented by smaller portions of merlot, cabernet franc and malbec. Aromas of blackcurrant, olive tapenade and a subtle bay leaf lift lead into a palate seamlessly woven with fine chalky tannins and well-judged oak supporting the concentrated fruit. It has plenty of power, yet maintains an elegant medium-bodied...

Margaret River

Red Blend

A blended red that harnesses the outstanding fruit of this low-yielding vineyard, brought together in a seamless and suave expression of Margaret River. Aromas of red fruits, tobacco, bay leaf and a trace of cocoa lead into a smoothly woven palate where crunchy red fruits interplay with darker elements in compelling fashion. A polished, refined wine of great style.

Margaret River

Shiraz

The cooler 2021 vintage has shaped the style of this excellent shiraz. Plush fruit, fine chalky tannins and carefully managed oak are seamlessly integrated. The palate reveals ripe plum and savoury meaty characters with a subtle hint of damp leather adding complexity. Rich and beautifully textured, with excellent balance throughout.

Margaret River

Semillon

Here's a wine that is testament to both excellent viticulture and thoughtful winemaking. Although 2024 was a warm vintage, this semillon displays remarkable finesse and delicacy while retaining the variety's classic citrus, lemon and crisp pear characters. Fine, focused and impressively long, it again poses the question of why more straight semillons aren't being produced.

Margaret River

Sauvignon Blanc

A wine that doesn't overplay sauvignon blanc's pungency, instead delivering the variety with finesse and restraint, reflecting the character of this vintage. Bright floral notes combine with delicate stone fruit aromas. The palate has lovely texture balanced by vibrant acidity, driving through to a clean, crisp finish.

Margaret River

Shiraz Blend

Palest pale pink, yet with a bright, luminous appearance. It's made predominantly from shiraz, with smaller contributions from merlot and chardonnay, the latter adding shape and texture through the middle palate while retaining the wine's elegant, light style. Delicate red currant aromas are joined by subtle strawberry confectionery and raspberry notes before a juicy, crunchy palate delivers excellent current drinking.

Margaret River

Semillon Sauvignon Blanc

Here's a wine that's all about current drinking, freshness and vibrancy. It's about 50% semillon, 38% sauvignon blanc, with the balance chardonnay providing the backbone and structure to carry the wine through to a sustained finish. The aromas are dominated by citrusy lemon with a little sliced pear. The palate is fresh and zingy, with appealing texture and bright natural...

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet sauvignon was the wine that put Cape Mentelle on the map and went a long way towards cementing Margaret River in the global wine psyche. This is clearly one of the finest examples produced since those early wines of the late 1970s. It captures the variety beautifully, with aromas of cedary blackcurrant, light bay leaf, and subtle olive tapenade....

Margaret River

Shiraz

A perfectly poised and presented example of a classy Margaret River shiraz from an outstanding year. The longer growing season allowed the fruit flavours to develop slowly and enabled the grapes to be picked in perfect condition. Lovely spicy, plummy, dark chocolate notes emerge on the nose, while the palate is bright and alive, bursting with red fruits. Dried herbs...

Margaret River

Zinfandel

Cape Mentelle has been making zinfandel almost from the outset, and it remains a style and variety eagerly sought by aficionados. It has been refined over the years, and this example, even in a warm year, shows lovely balance, restraint, and perfumed fruit intensity on the nose before delivering a remarkably soft, complex, and smooth palate structure. Lovely sweet fruit...

Margaret River

Shiraz

If you ever doubted that Margaret River could produce outstanding shiraz, then this wine should change your mind. It’s a beautifully elegant, balanced, and vibrant shiraz that delivers with deft understatement. The aromas show lovely plummy and spicy notes, while the palate is seamlessly woven, with fine tannin and oak integrated in support. A firm thread sustains through to the...

Margaret River

Cabernet Franc

Cabernet franc was a variety well suited to the longer, cooler, and quite beautiful 2023 vintage. It certainly allowed those lovely aromatic perfumes and floral characters to emerge. The palate is refined and elegant, capturing the vintage brilliantly. It also has substance and power, delivered with fine tannins, judicious oak use, and beautiful fruit expression. Lovely drinking now, but with...

Margaret River

White Blend

For many years, this has been one of the most distinctive Cape Mentelle wines. It’s a blend of 91% sauvignon blanc with the remainder semillon, made in a white Bordeaux style using barrel fermentation and maturation in oak, with a portion matured in concrete egg and clay amphora. The aroma is deeply complex from the start, with a nutty, lemony,...

Margaret River

Chardonnay

This is a generous, full, powerful chardonnay from this warm year. It was handpicked, whole bunch pressed, then wild fermented in oak before a further 10 months maturation. The nose shows those distinctive lemon meringue, stone fruit, and citrus notes, while the palate delivers more chalky lemon curd flavours. Striking. A perfect balance of oak and fruit.

Margaret River

Rose

A strikingly vibrant and fresh young rosé from this very good year. The colour is the palest of pale blush pinks. The nose shows crunchy red currant and watermelon characters, and is lively, almost effervescent, with fine red fruits sustained through to a clean, crisp finish. It’s a blend of shiraz and pinot noir, and it works extremely well.

Mount Barker

Chardonnay

A most appealing and enjoyable earlier-drinking style of chardonnay. It is generously flavoured and chock-full of peachy stone fruit, with a lifted citrusy lemon zip. The oak is lightly applied, introducing a slightly nutty character. It has a lovely vibrant mouthfeel and absolutely nails this style of wine for drinking in the shorter term.

Mount Barker

Riesling

In a warm year, the southern vineyards in the state performed quite well for the white varieties. This is a dry-style riesling with plenty to like about it. Floral, citrusy aromatics are immediately apparent, while the palate has settled into a groove with a minerally, spicy character complemented by natural citrus edges. The palate is controlled by fine, lingering acidity....

Mount Barker

Cabernet Sauvignon

This was a very warm year, and yet vineyards like this one produced some high-quality fruit. Loaded with black fruits, floral notes and a slightly spicy character evident initially on the nose. The palate is generous but medium-bodied, with good depth of flavour and a sustained, long finish. A subtle mix of blackcurrant and olive tapenade on the finish adds...

Mount Barker

Shiraz

Without doubt, one of the very best shiraz to come off this superb little vineyard, which was planted back in 1985. The aroma shows lovely spicy dark chocolate and ripe plummy notes, with some deeper black fruit evident. The palate is seamlessly integrated, with those spices emerging and the fine chalky tannins and subtle oak integration carrying through to the...

Mount Barker

Chardonnay

This is a slightly lighter, medium-bodied chardonnay from Mount Barker that's been given a little barrel fermentation to bring complexity and texture into the mid-palate while retaining that vibrant, lively and quite crunchy freshness. Subtle cashew and lemon meringue characters lead to a palate that is fine and quite delicate, threading through to a sustained, long finish. Delightful drinking over...

Mount Barker

Riesling

Over the years, some quite exceptional rieslings have come off this little vineyard just north of Mount Barker. Typically, the aromas are a combination of lime and lemon with a slightly spicy, mineral nuance. The palate is deeply intense but delivers with a degree of 2025 delicacy, and the dry finish is long. There's a beautiful mouthfeel about this riesling,...

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

The '23 vintage was another excellent year for cabernet sauvignon in Margaret River, producing wines of great depth and structure. This wine shows classic varietal characters of blackcurrant, cassis and a touch of mint, with a subtle influence of French oak adding complexity and finesse. The palate is full-bodied, with fine, integrated tannins and a long, elegant finish. A wine...

Margaret River

Shiraz

No surprise that in this very warm year the shiraz was picked quite early. About 30% of the wine was whole bunch for carbonic maceration, to give a vibrant, bright lift to the palate and the nose. Typical varietal pepper and spice combine with some toasty oak emerging. It has good structure and is seamlessly woven with fine tannins and...

Margaret River

Chardonnay

This turned out to be an excellent season for white varieties, particularly chardonnay, producing wines of delicacy but still with the latent Margaret River power. A small amount of the wine was allowed to go through malolactic fermentation, and then the wine was left for about nine months in oak with regular lees stirring as required. It has a rich...

Margaret River

Sauvignon Blanc

This has been made in a fumé style, and it's a combination of largely sauvignon blanc with about 15% semillon. It received about 42% new French oak in a mix of barriques and puncheons, which has had a significant impact on the wine. Lovely floral, stone fruit and nutty characters on the nose, and a palate that is both textural...

Margaret River

Semillon Sauvignon Blanc

The complexity is immediately evident on the nose of this classic Margaret River combination. Part of each variety was wild fermented in oak, and this has added some lovely aromatics and a textural feel that sets it apart from the standard versions. Lightly nutty, with floral notes and a little citrus edge coming from the refreshing palate. Excellent concentration and...

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

Yet another outstanding wine from this great vintage. Typical of the year, it's a wine of medium to full body but with incredible depth and intensity. Loads of leafy blackcurrant on the nose with slight olive tapenade nuances. The palate then harnesses it all with slightly chalky tannins and well-integrated oak. It has structure and poise with a precisely focused...

Margaret River

Red Blend

This blend has been such a consistent value-for-money wine for Victory Point over the years. I've always loved the name. It's a combination of cabernet sauvignon and malbec, so it has the structure of the cabernet with the warmth and fleshiness of the malbec, especially through the mid-palate. It was a warm year, and that is reflected in the generosity...

Margaret River

Cabernet Franc

The wines from 2025 had a certain delicacy about them, and this cabernet franc captures that. The nose shows a mix of dark fruits with a light floral lift. The palate has such an effortless, graceful feel, with bright red fruits supported by silky fine tannins and gentle use of oak. This is a cabernet franc with real character and...

Margaret River

Pinot Noir

This slightly longer, cooler season in Margaret River turned out to be ideal for producing pinot noir, a variety not generally associated with this region, yet this one is quite superb. The aromas reveal slightly funky cherry, a little truffly mushroom character and brighter red fruits. The palate is light-bodied, but that beautiful combination of slightly sour cherry and a...

Margaret River

Chardonnay

The colour is brilliant gold. The nose has an extraordinary layered complexity, with traces of honeycomb, crème brûlée and a subtle struck match character. The palate is deeply intense with both power and finesse, and those complex characters initially evident on the nose start to emerge through this very long palate profile. The finish is dry and savoury, with precise...