Summary - By Dr Tom B Cullity , 2007

The foregoing is a bald account of the real reasons why wine-making was established at Margaret River.   The personal attitudes and influences and the background of this process have been emphasised.   Technical details other than those referred to are recorded in Department of Agriculture files and other sources.

Reisling vines at Vasse Felix, 1968

It is hard now to appreciate the situation when the first wines were developed south of Busselton by people with no horticultural or wine-making experience or training.   This account is about that situation.

Riesling vines at Vasse Felix, 1980 (looking North)

It beggars a rational explanation why "regional wine origin certification" (which had a successful trial in the 1970s) has not been maintained.   "Margaret River's" repute is its most important attribute, and it is vital to protect it.

Curious and specious claims and observations are often made about developments of this sort and the main value of this publication would lie in establishing a true record of the beginning.   There have been many important contributions and developments since which would make the area hard to recognise from the vantage point of 1967 - and the reverse applies.

Vasse Felix was Margaret River's feasibility study and I am proud to have been the bell-wether.

Vasse Felix Winery, around 1985

All materials on this site are copyright (2007) and are the property of Dr T B Cullity, no unauthorised reproduction of this material is permitted without the written permission of the author.
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