A classic Western Australia cellar door, Clairault Streicker along Caves Road in the Wilyabrup subregion of Margaret River offers an excellent cafe restaurant and some fun wine tasting experiences.

Family-owned Margaret River grower and wine producer Clairault Streicker is really two wine estates in one. In 2001, New York businessman John H. Streicker visited winemaking region for the first time and was so enamoured by the lifestyle he decided to dabble in winemaking. He acquired a vineyard at Yallingup the very next year – quickly followed by two more vineyards, Ironstone in Wilyabrup and Bridgeland in Karridale – and by 2006 produced his inaugural vintage.

Then there’s Clairault. One of the pioneering wineries in the region, Clairault was founded in 1976 with four hectares of vines in Wilyabrup. It became part of Streicker in 2012.

Today Clairault Streicker spans four vineyard sites with a total of over 200 hectares under vine. Visiting their cellar door, located on the Clairault’s original Wilyabrup vineyard site, effectively lets you check out both their wine portfolios.

Clairault Streicker - Streicker Wines

While Clairault Streicker doesn’t offer a winery visit, its cellar door offers experiences that go beyond the usual. Aside from the usual guided tastings, wine enthusiasts can sign up for a wine blending experience that lets you try your hand at blending your own red wine expression. Another experience package involves a wine blending session followed by a three-course lunch with wine pairings at its vineyard kitchen, which is highly recommended for those who want a more complete Margaret River food and wine experience.

Or just drop in for lunch anyway. The grub here is casual Australian, made with fresh in-season produce – depending on the time of year you may find on the menu grilled Shark Bay prawns or calamari tossed in a spiced Thai-style salad, an unctuously rich baked cheese soufflé, house-made fettucine served with barramundi or a pork fillet, for example.

Clairault Streicker vineyard picnic

Prefer an outdoor experience instead? Pick up a picnic basket – loaded full of house-made, seasonal and wine-friendly bites – and lounge on the lawn or among the vines in the sprawling vineyard with a bottle of wine or three.

Be sure to pick up a case or two when you leave, as well. Their classic Margaret River approach – as well as distinctly diverse sites spanning multiple subregions and a wide range of varietal plantings – offers an authentic oenological snapshot of what this premier Western Australian winemaking region can offer. Try, for example, the zingy single-vineyard Streicker Fumé Blanc vinified with Sauvignon Blanc from its Bridgeland block, the MR benchmark that is their signature Clairault Chardonnay, or the highly-regarded Streicker Nysa, a complex Bordeaux-style red blend made with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon from its Wilyabrup sites.

[Photos courtesy of Clairault Streicker]


Clairault Streicker (Margaret River)

Address 3277 Caves Rd, Wilyabrup WA 6282, Australia (Google Maps link)
Opening Hours 10.00am to 5pm daily
Tel (61) 8 9755 6225
Web www.clairaultstreickerwines.com.au
Facebook ClairaultStreicker
Instagram @clairaultstreicker

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