Wine podcast to spotlight two Western Australian wine regions to international audience

Wine podcast to spotlight two Western Australian wine regions to international audience
Peter Richards (left) with Larry Cherubino. Image courtesy Wines of Western Australia

The globally downloaded podcast Wine Blast, hosted by Masters of Wine Susie Barrie and Peter Richards, will launch a podcast mini-series on Western Australian wines to kick off on the 24th January and 7th February. Part 1 will feature the wines, people, landscapes and stories of the Great Southern wine region, while Part 2 will shine the spotlight on Margaret River.

Coordinated by Wines of Western Australia’s WA Wines to the World program, this podcast mini-series will showcase the Great Southern and Margaret River to a “highly engaged” global wine audience, both consumers and trade, which Wines of Western Australia said will inspire listeners to explore and purchase Western Australian wines.

The podcasts follows Peter Richards’ week-long immersive tour of WA’s iconic south-west wine regions in November 2024, where he experienced the regions first-hand — walking through vineyards, tasting wines and recording a diversity of local conversations and scene-setting sound bites.

Richards’ journey began in the Great Southern, with stops at Plantagenet Wines (Mount Barker), Swinney (Frankland River), Alkoomi (Frankland River), Forest Hill Vineyard (Mount Barker), Singlefile Wines (Denmark) and Cherubino’s Riversdale Vineyard (Frankland River). Richards was also invited to taste a line-up of sub-regional wines at a masterclass held at West Cape Howe winery, hosted by Gavin Berry (West Cape Howe) and Rob Diletti (Castel Rock Estate).

Tom Wisdom, president of Great Southern Wine Producers’ Association and managing director for Plantagenet Wines remarked that the publicity of the visit and podcast would be significant for the region.

“From an industry standpoint, it’s deeply rewarding to have people of this calibre visit our regions, engage with us as dedicated wine producers, and provide a broader global perspective on our work,” said Wisdom.

Richards then travelled west to Margaret River, spending time with Cherubino Wines, Xanadu, Voyager Estate, Cape Mentelle, Moss Wood, Passel Estate, Vasse Felix, Cloudburst and Cullen Wines.

 

Peter Richards and Larry Cherubino. Image courtesy Wines of Western Australia

 

“I was lucky enough to spend the whole day with Peter, taking him from Frankland River to Margaret River and everywhere in between,” said winemaker Larry Cherubino. “He was exploring familiar terrain in a completely different context, also delving into some of the emerging varieties and how they suit what we’re doing, especially in the Great Southern. It was fantastic to get his perspective — it really boosted my confidence in the decisions we’ve made about what to plant and where. From a stylistic point of view, it was exciting to see our work through fresh eyes.”

Tim Shand, chief winemaker at Voyager Estate, described it as “a privilege and a pleasure” to host Richards at Voyager Estate. “I am excited to have an MW as erudite as Peter taking a deep dive into Margaret River wine and taking his experience to the broad audience that Wine Blast has built,” said Shand.

Richards’ Margaret River visit was also timed so that he could attend the annual flagship tastings at Cape Mentelle (Cabernet Sauvignon) and Cullen Wines (Chardonnay), where he additionally took on VIP speaker roles. He also attended two events held as part of the Pair’d Margaret River festival – Leeuwin Estate X JAAN (a wine dinner collaboration between Leeuwin Estate’s Head Chef Dan Gedge and JAAN Singapore’s Michelin-starred Kirk Westaway) and the Grand Tasting by Singapore Airlines (a collaborative wine, food and music event held at Howard Park Wines).

 

Peter Richards at a Cape Mentelle Cabernet tasting. Image courtesy Ovis Creative

 

Liz Mencel, program manager for WA Wines to the World, said Richards’ time spent in the Margaret River and Great Southern regions would provide the podcast with “a rich palette of content” to draw from.

This is a first for Australian wine regions and we’re very excited to listen in from the 24th of January!” added Mencel.

Are you a Daily Wine News subscriber? If not, click here to join our mailing list. It’s free!