7876 TRAVELTRAVEL ++ LEISURE / JANUARY 2017LEISURE / JANUARY 2017
Caves Road, the
main winery-
lined path that
runs through
the Margaret
River region.Margaret River’s fi rst-ever winery,
Vasse Felix still delivers one of the
area’s most elegant experiences.
“And we have more than a hundred thousand
visitors a year, so they fi gure it out.” Many of
these guests come for the summer outdoor
concert series, which takes place on the lush lawn
every year. The two chipper septuagenarians
don’t make wine anymore, but are never far
away from whatever’s going on at Leeuwin.
When I stopped by for a tasting, the Horgans told
me that back in the early days, they enlisted the
help of a knowledgeable friend. “Neither of us
knew anything before we met Bob Mondavi,”
recalled Tricia, of the man who put Napa Valley
wine on the map. “He told us what to plant and
where to plant it.”
Those decisions were made easier by the
climate. “We’re a warm region with an air
conditioner,” Virginia Willcock, the chief vintner
at the well-regarded Vasse Felix, explained to
me over a lunch of roasted root vegetables
topped with toasted barley and dill at the
winery’s restaurant. She was referring to the
ocean that provides balance to the warm grape-growing season. Willcock’s Cabernets have what
she calls “a savoury, fl oral, earthy quality,” which
she attributes to the cool, dry breezes.
Vasse Felix was Margaret River’s fi rst-ever
winery, established in 1967—and it still delivers
one of the area’s most elegant experiences.
The two-storey tasting room has walls clad in
reclaimed timber, and its concrete fl oors are
painted to a dark gloss. At the restaurant,
chef Aaron Carr’s cuisine far surpasses typical
winery fare; he off ers a US$73, Asian-infl uenced
tasting menu that might include kingfi sh, served
alongside eel and wasabi, or a banana dessert
with miso, yuzu, and peanuts.
If Vasse Felix is the region’s established
heavyweight, then Si Vintners is its brash
upstart. Run by Iwo Jakimowicz, who founded
the 30-acre, all-natural winery along with his
wife, Sarah Morris, in 2010, Si has a bare-bones,
by-appointment-only tasting room. “We’re
constantly broke, but at least we have passion,”
Jakimowicz joked when I met him one afternoon.
The dynamic wine-making couple, who honed
their craft while living in Spain, make an
exquisite Chardonnay, a standout rosé, and a
wonderful blend of Cab, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.
Surprisingly, I didn’t see many tourists
during my winery visits, which added toBEYOND
DispatchAUSTRALIAN SCENICS/GETTY IMAGES