Stunning Decanter awards signal a boom for Margaret River wine region

The full results from last week’s Decanter international wine show have revealed a host of stunning accolades for wines hailing from the Margaret River region. Margaret River Wine Association chief executive Amanda Whiteland welcomed the news of 104 medals for the region’s exhibitors. “We are ecstatic with these results which recognise the uppermost quality of Margaret River wines on the global stage,” she said. Margaret River producers not only brought in the biggest medal haul in the country — claiming three of the top Best in Show awards — but outperformed whole countries. Ms Whiteland said the only international region to equal Margaret River’s tally was the famed Tuscany region of Italy. “Countries like Argentina, Germany, Greece and South Africa only had two (winning) wines, and Austria, Chile, New Zealand, Serbia, United Kingdom and the United States of America only had one wine each in the Best in Show,” Ms Whiteland said. “If you compare with other regions, Bordeaux, Champagne and Piedmont received two wines in Best in Show, and Burgundy, Provence, Languedoc-Roussillon, Alsace, Sicily and Veneto all had one wine.” Decanter was one of the most hotly contested wine shows on the planet, with 57 countries fielding more than 18,000 wines for selection. Best in Show awards for Domaine Naturaliste, Evans & Tate, and House of Cards represented 6 per cent of those winners. Within Australia, South Australia’s McLaren Vale came in next with two top gongs, while the Barossa and Hunter Valley wine regions scored one. “The exposure to Margaret River wines that these awards provide these international judges, consumers and trade is significant,” Ms Whiteland said. “I am sure the huge number of Margaret River wineries, over 30 wineries, that received one of the competition’s top awards will be celebrating.” The winning producers were ecstatic about the news they saw as heralding yet a further cementing of the region’s international reputation which would have tangible knock-on effects not only for exports, but wine tourism as well. Evans & Tate senior winemaker Matt Byrne said the win for the producer’s Redbrook Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 was one of only three awards handed to that variety and scored an equal-top 97 points with judges. “Humbled and proud is what our small team at E&T felt,” Mr Byrne said. “Our Redbrook vineyard in the heart of the Wilyabrup area in Margaret River has consistently grown special cabernet sauvignon since the 1970s, so when the extraordinary 2018 vintage came along, we knew we had the potential to elevate this wine into the stratosphere — which the judges (at Decanter) also recognised. “If I could choose any place in the world to grow cabernet sauvignon, it would be on this small plot of land at Redbrook in Wilyabrup, hands down.” As the Times reported last week, family run House of Cards operators Travis and Elizabeth Wray welcomed their Best in Show award as a reward for unwavering commitment despite juggling business and young children. Among the top medal winners, Clairault Streicker, Robert Oatley and Xanadu received platinum medals.