It is forty years since I planted the first grape vines in the Margaret River district, at Vasse Felix, Cowamarup. This is true only in the sense that it was the first attempt to produce wine grapes and wine of significant quality with that clear purpose in mind.
The Bussells planted grape vines in the 1830s. Sam Moleri grew grapes, made wine and sold it door-to-door in Margaret River in the 1930s—he lived about 5 kilometres north of Vasse Felix. Ephraim Clark, Kevin Cullen’s maternal grandfather, grew grapes and had a wineyard and winery near Bunbury earlier in the century. The Duces had a vineyard and winery near Boyanup, planted after the first World War, and sold wine in wine-shops in Manjimup and Bunbury. I have tasted a beautiful Hermitage, courtesy of Bill Jamieson, that was made at Houghtons by Jack Mann in the 1950s, from Duces’ Boyanup grapes. Indeed, the obvious quality of this wine was a practical support to me in deciding that the effort to make quality wine in the cooler regions of the South West was worthwhile.
The motive for the first planting near Margaret River was not only commercial. It was a doubtful proposition without back-up. The only aim was to make the best possible wine. There seemed no reason why this should not be done and it was hard to understand why nobody had done this sand why nobody showed any sign of doing it. With every intimation of affection and respect for many friends in the Swan Valley, it seemed obvious that Western Australia should do better.
This is to be a brief account of how the idea of premium table wine production in the South West (as distinct from the Great Southern) arose and developed.
It is because memories become dim that it seems worth my recording what I recall to be the true events and directions of the beginning of quality wine production in the Margaret River region. Details are recorded elsewhere. This account is concerned with the influences and personal decisions and contributions which really set the scene for such a development as the Margaret River wine-making industry.
Like everything else, it is a matter of soil and seed. The events prior to the 1960s naturally influenced what followed and it is probably worthwhile referring to the antecedent period to set the scene for later events in Margaret River.
Part Two:
Wine-making in Margaret River: An Introduction
