Wine-making in WA naturally falls into three groups—the colonial, post-World War One and post-1960.
The Colonial Period
This commenced shortly after the foundation of the colony in 1829. The story of Houghtons’, Valencia (originally Santa Rosa), both planted with cuttings from the region of Cape Town, is well recorded. Jack Mann has recently conveyed his deep knowledge of this area to the oral historians.
Post World War One
The multiplications of small wineries in the Swan Valley that occurred in this period was largely the work of Dalmatian immigrants. They were industrious and as patient as anyone could be. Their aim was to supply a local city and country market, mainly their countrymen and Italian migrants with cheap table wine. In Australia and WA, until the 1960s, three quarters of bulk wine was fortified due to demand by English settlers and their descendants.
There can be few, if any, wine regions of the world with greater growing period heat and sunlight exposure, and the Swan Valley lent itself to production of wine of this type. During the latter part of this period, Jack Mann at Houghton’s winery, was alone (and undaunted) in his idealistic pursuit of the highest possible quality table wine (as he perceived it to be). He also preached that this would be achieved in the cooler growing areas of WA. Maurice O’Shea of the Hunter Valley, also expressed the view at this time that Albany would make premium wine. He had never been to Western Australia.
Post 1960
In the 1950s there was economic hardship in the Swan Valley due to poor returns from dried currants. Dried Fruits (WA) Ltd had accumulated funds from levies given them against imported dried fruit. With the co-operation of the Dried Vine Fruit Association of WA they stimulated the establishment of the Vine Fruit Research Trust, which subsidised research at the University of WA, trying to identify problems in the industry. Walter Ashton, the Trust Chairman, was dissatisfied with progress and arranged, together with the Fulbright Foundation, that Professor Olmo, a Californian horticulturalist, should come to WA in 1955 to investigate problems in the grape industries and to make suggestions.
In 1955 his report, “A Survey of the Grape Industry of WA” was published. He emphasised that the future of the industry was, for various reasons, in the production of table-wine in cooler regions, specifying Mount Barker, which he visited. I have been told that as Olmo and his companions passed up the South West, on the long trip from Albany to Busselton, where they were late for a dinner appointment with Bettenay, the local Department of Agriculture Officer, Olmo gestured towards the whole of the area now under vines in Margaret River. He asked what sort of country it was. They were in a hurry and he was told that it lacked obvious promise.
Olmo’s report lay doggo. Then in 1963 Bill Jamieson, Government Viticulturalist, was asked by Les Slade, assistant to Charles Court, Ministry of Industrial Development, to suggest methods of helping the flagging grape industry in the Swan Valley. Jamieson pointed out Olmo’s recommendation to make wine in cooler areas; also that demand for premium wine was increasing and that cuttings of suitable grape varieties were already established on the Swan Research Station. Charles Court then formed the Vine Fruit Advisory Committee which published recommendations in 1964. The members of the committee were G.K. Baron (chairman), L. Slade, J. Mann, David Roe, W. Jamieson and W.M. Taylor.
The committee recommended a small experimental plantation and this was done on Pearce’s farm at Forest Hill in 1966. In 1966 and 1967 the cuttings failed due to water logging and grasshoppers. They subsequently thrived and wine is still made from this vineyard. This illustrates the hazards tyros must overcome in a new venture away from a seasoned and securely established industry.
There was still no mention or thought of the South West. Despite this neglect the foregoing is relevant to development in Margaret River.
Part Three:
Wine-making in Margaret River: An Historical Background
