Back in the 70’s when Margaret River was being established, to the north there were a couple of pioneers also getting vineyards underway. Namely, Killerby and Capel Vale. But it was not until the mid 90’s that we began to see more vineyards being established in the greater area.
Those that were around back then, talk about early meetings of growers, most happening at the Dardy Pub. Geographe pioneers such as David Rourke, Peter Giumelli, Don Williams, Matt Alldridge and Brian Wansbrough would have been amongst them.
Initially these meetings focused on how to grow grapes. As time went on and more people came on board, a growers association was formed. The Geographe Vignerons Association Inc was officially established in 1996.
One of the first tasks undertaken and discussed was to establish a name for this new wine region and to acquire a Geographical Indication registration.
What is a Geographical Indication or GI - I hear some of you asking ?
A ‘GI’ identifies a good or product, such as wine, as originating in a specific region where a particular quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to that geographic origin. For a wine region it is a geographical area defined by a combination of conditions such as the soil types and climatic conditions that have influence on how the grapes grow and ultimately the wine made from them.
A key person instrumental in making the case for the establishment of what we now know as the Geographe Wine Region was Robert Bowen. Rob researched and put together all the necessary paperwork and applications that were required to be submitted to the Geographical Indications Committee at the time. This included detailed information on exactly where the boundaries of this region would be.
I’ve seen that submission, much of it was handwritten, and for those too young to remember there were also numerous faxes, our way of communication before email.
The Australian Geographical Indication "Geographe" was officially entered in the Register of Protected Names on 25 March 1999 thanks to the efforts of Rob and his colleagues. The name is taken from the Geographe Bay which stretches from Bunbury in the north to Cape Naturaliste in the south. With its origins linked to the French explorer Baudin and his ship Le Geographe.
Rob Bowen is also one of West Australian's most awarded and experienced winemakers, and a pioneer for the Geographe Wine Region. He was chief winemaker at Capel Vale and was also instrumental in the establishment of Willow Bridge Estate, working with Jeff and Vicki Dewar as they started on their winemaking venture.
Rob has gone on to make many contributions over his career to the WA Wine Industry, and has been also recognised with the following:
The Jack Mann Medal for Outstanding Services to the WA Wine Industry in 2017
The Dianna Cullen Award for his service to the WA Wine Industry.
The Ian Tyer Award for services to the Great Southern Wine Region.
I now invite Jeff Dewar, Willow Bridge to come forward to make the Award presentation.