The vineyard tracks have dried, the canopy is filling out, and our electric buggy is back on the rows. From October through to May, the Wines & Vines Experience, our guided vineyard tour and wine tasting in Margaret River’s Wilyabrup sub-region, returns to Fraser Gallop Estate.
It is the closest way to understand what we mean by the essence of Wilyabrup. Not a tour so much as an unhurried morning spent where the wines begin, with a glass in hand.
Each month on the tour looks a little different. In spring, the vines are in early growth, with fresh green shoots along every row. Through summer, the canopy fills out, and the fruit begins to colour. From late summer into autumn, the vintage is underway, and guests may see rows being hand-picked and the winery at its busiest. Whenever you come, you see the vineyard as it is that week.
A vineyard tour through Wilyabrup
The experience begins at the cellar door with a glass of rosé and a little orientation. Our estate sits 20km north of Margaret River and 6km from the Indian Ocean, at the highest point in the heart of the Wilyabrup district. It is a pocket of the region long recognised for its drainage, microclimate, and ocean breezes that keep our chardonnay fresh.
From there, guests board our solar-powered electric buggy and set off across the estate’s 20 hectares of dry-grown vines. Along the way, the vineyard’s story unfolds row by row.
- The cabernet blocks were planted to the Houghton clone. Nigel Gallop bought different rootstock and, days before planting, started again at real expense on the advice that it wouldn’t reach the quality he wanted. It remains the clearest example of how we do things here: the correct way, never the easy way.
- A vineyard without irrigation. Our vines were left to find water in the deep clay subsoil. It took seven years to the first commercial crop, and it rewards us with smaller berries and greater flavour intensity.
- The chardonnay block, grown from the Gin Gin clone and cooled by sea breezes.
- The gardens and Gallop House are laid out in the manner of Capability Brown, so the Palladian-style house gradually reveals itself across the water.
Every stop comes back to a simple idea. Nigel Gallop planted this vineyard in 1999 with one vision, and every wine we make comes from it.
Wine tasting among the vines
We draw the tasting from our Parterre range, made from fruit hand-selected from the best-performing rows of each block. We pour each wine at a picturesque spot in the vineyard—the Semillon Sauvignon Blanc beside the sauvignon blocks, the Chardonnay with the house in view, and the Cabernet Sauvignon saved for a final stop we’d rather not give away.
The morning also takes a look behind the scenes of the winery, purpose-built in 2008, and a taste from the barrel. It’s a chance to see what Head Winemaker Ellin Tritt is working on now, well before it reaches the bottle.
Ellin joined the estate in 2017 and spent seven years working alongside Clive Otto before becoming Head Winemaker in 2024. That continuity is part of why our wines speak so consistently of this place, changing only with each vintage.
A small-group winery experience
Each experience is limited to seven guests. That keeps it personal, with plenty of time for questions. For friends or family, you can book the whole buggy privately.
Tour details and booking
- Season: October to May
- When: Daily, 10:20 am to 12 pm
- Group size: Up to seven guests, or book the whole buggy
- Price: $95 per person
- Where: Fraser Gallop Estate, 493 Metricup Road, Wilyabrup
The season depends on the weather. Once winter rain arrives — typically mid-May — the vineyard tracks become too soft for the buggy, and the experience rests until spring. Places are limited, so we recommend booking ahead.
Book your Wines & Vines vineyard tour →
Afterwards, our Margaret River cellar door is open daily from 11 am to 4 pm for anyone who would like to linger, revisit a favourite, or take a bottle or two home.
