Congratulations to Max Fairbrass who has been awarded the Blackwood Valley Wine Industry Association Life Member Award at this year’s Annual General Meeting. Please read Max’s story below, with special thanks to Bev Prideaux for collating his historical impact on the Blackwood Valley wine region.

William Fairbrass moved to an 800-hectare property in Kulikup, 300 metres above sea level, now fittingly known as Blackwood Crest, in 1906. He was working on the establishment of the Katanning-Donnybrook railway line to earn vital income necessary to develop the land. In 1908 he planted a grapevine (table grapes) that was carefully tended on the long voyage from Kent in the south of England all the way to Western Australia. Some of the other early settlers also planted grapevine cuttings, and many still survive, despite the odd white ant attack.

In 1906, the Fairbrass family established an 800-hectare property in Kulikup, east of Boyup Brook, with table grape vines planted two years later. Almost 70 years later, descendent, Max Fairbrass, took a sample of the table grapes from the Fairbrass property to the Department of Agriculture and was impressed with the sugar-acid balance. It was in 1976 that Max was finally seduced by the call of the vine. In a bold move he, and wife Roz, planted a two hectare vineyard, named ‘Blackwood Crest’, being the first commercial plantings in the Blackwood Valley.

In 1982, Blackwood Crest had its first vintage. The vineyard consisted of riesling, semillon and sauvignon blanc, cabernet and shiraz. In 1994, a further 2.5 hectares were planted, increasing the area to more than 7 hectares, with a 50-tonne production expected at capacity.

Max has a natural affinity for the land and vineyard, resulting in vines that have been allowed to mature slowly with minimum interference or chemical.

In 1985, Blackwood Crest won the Best Western Australian Port at the Perth Royal Show, and has since won numerous medals and trophies over the years, including the 1990 Shiraz being judged in the top 80 Shiraz wines in Australia.

Max has believed for nearly fifty years that the Blackwood Valley ha

d the potential to produce premium fruit and premium wines.  He holds the belief that the soil, climate and environment is as good as you could get. After so many years of doing it alone, Max finds great satisfaction in seeing others now making the same discovery. His vision has led many others following his path in planting grapes and making wine in the Blackwood Valley region.

The inaugural meeting to form the Blackwood Valley Wine Association was held in September 1996, with Max part of the first committee.

Other contributions Max has made to the WA wine industry include being the Blackwood committee member and representative delegate for the WA Wine Association in 1997 and he has been a volunteer and an Associate Judge at the Blackwood Valley Wine Show.

Sources:

Bev Prideaux,

Blackwood Valley Wine Assoc.

 

 

 

 

VINTAGE 2024 IN THE BLACKWOOD VALLEY

Records were broken in the Blackwood Valley for Vintage 2024. It will be remembered as one of the earliest, fastest, and most compacted vintages in recent times. Vine growth stages, from budburst to flowering, flowering to fruit set, fruit set to veraison, and veraison to harvest were all completed in record time. Some wine regions in WA had two vintages in the same year which is extraordinary!

This was all due to lower than average winter rains for 2023, combined with higher than average temperatures all through spring and summer, and topped off with consistent warm easterly winds all through Summer. Soil temperatures at budburst were high, so vines woke up early and raced away, and did not stop until harvest. As a result, most varieties were harvested 4 weeks earlier than average.

The consistent warm conditions put extra pressure on the vines and, because of this, yields on average were down 30%. Vines that received water through irrigation still performed well, but yields were still down.

The Marri blossom this vintage was very heavy, and the trees put on a fantastic display of white flowers. It was also early and timed perfectly with ripening grapes. Because of this there was no bird damage at all, as they had plenty of Marri nectar to eat.

Harvesting of white grapes started very early in February and 95% of reds were harvested by the end of February. The fast and early vintage put a lot of logistical pressure on wineries and harvesting contractors, trying to keep up with ripening fruit.  Red varieties were ready to harvest before whites were finished, putting extra pressure on wineries trying to fit everything in.

Vintage 2024 in the Blackwood Valley will go down as early and fast. With warm days, no rain and lower yields it still resulted in beautiful ripe, clean fruit with great concentration of flavours. Once again we look forward to fantastic wines from Vintage 24.

Mick Hester – Owner and Vigneron – Upper Blackwood Estate Vineyards

Photo credits to Mick Hester

Quotes from Winemakers Andrew Dawson and Marie- Pierre Dussault

“The whites have great fruit concentrate and flavour with surprising acidity considering the conditions. The early dry season meant the reds could hang out for optimal flavour and tannin ripeness, reds across the board have great concentration and depth of flavour”. Andrew Dawson, Winemaker Yeah Wines

“2024 vintage presented itself early and certainly brought a few challenges with the warm weather and dry summer. The Sauvignon Blanc is a blend of two vineyards and the aroma blows us way with its delicious tropical nose, especially pinapple. The Viognier was picked riper than last year which should produce a deeper flavour of apricot and honey. It is developing partially in oak, partially in tank. We are really satisfied with the wines and can’t wait to see how they will develop over the next few months”  Winemaker, Marie-Pierre Dussalt Sunnyhurst Wines.

 

 

 

 

Pictured left to right: Gene from Ironwood Estate receiving his ‘Best Shiraz’ Award from BVWIA President Craig Nield.

West Australian Boutique and Single Vineyard Wine Show Celebrates 20 Years of Excellence

Boyup Brook 6th December

The Blackwood Valley Wine Industry Association (BVWIA) annually presents the Western Australian Boutique and Single Vineyard Wine Show, a hallmark event that has been at the forefront of showcasing the finest wines from the local region and small producers across the State, for over two decades.

This year’s edition, sponsored by My Vintner and the Shire of Nannup, was a celebration of exceptional craftsmanship in the wines and diversity across WA’s wine regions. The event, held at the Nannup Recreation Centre, hosted an impressive line up of WA wine industry experts including; Tony Davis, Damian Hutton, Ryan Aggiss, Feleasha Prendergast, Liv Maiorana, Matt Godfrey, Phil Hutchison, Ulrika Larsson, Jen Bound, Andrew Bretherton.

The panels judged an extraodinary 240 entries from a unique blend of Blackwood Valley Geographical Indication (GI) wines and entries from Western Australian Boutique producers (defined as those who annually crush less than 250 tonnes), as well as Single Vineyard wines from Western Australia, where there is no restriction on the size of the winery entering these distinctive wines.

“We are thrilled to reach this significant milestone for the WA Boutique and Single Vineyard Wine Show. This event has become a showcase of excellence, highlighting not only the quality of wines produced from the Blackwood Valley region, but also the talents of small producers from across the State. We extend our sincere gratitude to major sponsors My Vintner and the Shire of Nannup and the generous support from Vineline, Vine Torque, Breight Group, Ease, AHA, Boyup Coop and SWAT.” said Craig Nield, President of the BVWIA.

 

2023 WA BOUTIQUE AND SINGLE VINEYARD WINE SHOW TROPHY WINNERS

Vinline Mobile Bottling Best Chardonnay

Nikola Estate 2022 Regional Margaret River Chardonnay

Boyup Brook Co-op Best Sauvignon Blanc

Millbrook 2023 Regional Sauvignon Blanc

Breight Group Best Riesling

No trophy awarded

Best Other Single Variety White Wine

Aravina Estate 2022 Block 4 Chenin Blanc

 Best White Blend

Hamelin Bay Wines 2023 Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc

AHA Viticulture Best Shiraz

Ironwood Estate Wines 2021 Shiraz 

Vine Torque Best Cabernet Sauvignon

Windance Estate 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon

Best Other Single Variety Red Wine

Birdie 2023 “Arthur or Martha” Nouveau Grenache

Best Red Blend

Hamelin Bay Wines 2022 Cabernet Malbec 

Best Rosé

Borrello Vineyards 2023 Tempranillo Rose

Best Sparkling

No trophy awarded

Best Sweet Wine or Fortified

No trophy awarded 

Shire of Nannup Best Blackwood Valley White Wine

Bunderra Estate 2023 Sauvignon Blanc 

Shire of Nannup Best Blackwood Valley Red Wine

St Johns Wine 2022 Crush Shiraz

Ease Business Services Best Alternative Variety

Birdie 2023 “Arthur or Martha” Nouveau Grenache

Vine Torque Best White Wine of Show

Nikola Estate 2022 Regional Margaret River Chardonnay 

Breight Group Best Red Wine of Show

Ironwood Estate Wines 2021 Shiraz

Shire of Nannup Most Successful Blackwood Valley Exhibitor

St Johns Wine

My Vintner Most Successful Boutique Exhibitor

Lenton Brae

My Vintner Best Wine of the Show

Nikola Estate 2022 Regional Margaret River Chardonnay

For a list of the full Wine Show results please click here , for media enquiries, please contact:

Craig Nield

President Blackwood Valley Wine Industry Association

[email protected]

0427 522 826

About BVWIA

The Blackwood Valley Wine Industry Association (BVWIA) is dedicated to promoting and enhancing the Blackwood Valley wine region, fostering a sense of community among its members, and showcasing the exceptional grapes and wines produced in the area. With a focus on sustainability and excellence, BVWIA plays a pivotal role in supporting the local wine industry.

 

The following dates apply to the 2021 WA Boutique Wine Show, the 2021 WA Single Vineyard Wine Show and the 2021 Blackwood Valley Wine Show:-

The Wine Show dates have been altered from the usual October dates due to the Wine Show of WA moving to a similar time slot to our previous dates.

2020 Results Book

2020 Trophy Winners

328 wines have been entered in the 2020 Blackwood Valley, WA Boutique and WA Single Vineyard Wine Shows.  56 producers have entered wines from most wine regions in WA.

The wines will be judged on 15 & 16 October with the results released online on Saturday 17 October.