The Best Wineries Near Perth
If you’re looking for a fun day out, enjoy the opportunity to taste some of Perth’s best wines and sample some delicious food. This guide will take you through what we think are the four best wineries in Perth that offer superb wine tasting experiences, good food and beautiful surroundings.
Whether you’re partial to a chardonnay, shiraz or even a dessert wine, you needn’t travel far from Perth to sample the best in the business.
There are many wineries in Perth, but not all of them will be the best. This blog post aims to help you find the best wineries in Perth for your needs.
After reading this article, you’ll know which wine is right for you and where to go to get it!
1. Faber Vineyards
This Swan Valley winery scores a spot for all the parties they throw. Think local producer’s days, Christmas BBQs, Australia day parties and plenty of long lunches among the wine barrels.
Established in 1997, Faber remains an intimate, family-style winery where you can relax, sit down, enjoy some wine, chat with the winemaker and share a platter or two.
Faber is Latin for a smith, a craftsman, an artisan who is skilled and ingenious. Owners John Griffiths and Jane Micallef founded the vineyard with a mission to grow regionally distinctive grapes and craft wines that are rich and flavoursome.
They are true believers in the tradition of winemaking, that wine should be inspired, crafted with a sense of creating something distinctive and authentic,
The wines are crafted with the belief that wine should taste grapes and rely on the purity of fruit flavour and delicious fruit characters to drive their wines, and that weight and fullness should come from ripeness, an extension of taste, not simply more tannin or more acid.
They want their wines to ‘sing of their origins’ and highlight the fruit from which the wine is made, not disguise it, resulting in fresh and appealing wines with great drinkability.
Just 30 minutes from Perth, this vineyard and winery in the Swan Valley region are known for their expressive craft wines. On a visit, you can make a day of it and enjoy a full tour of the winery, learning all about the winemaking process.
Following this, you’ll get to sample the Faber range with a tutored tasting. This is a terrific way to drink wine, uncovering the aromas and flavours with the experts.
Great wine deserves great food, so grab a table in the sun and pair your wine with a local produce platter. It’s a match made in heaven.
Priding themselves on being extremely exclusive, the cellar door offers unique sit-down tasting sessions with shared platters and plenty of time to chat.
Themed events are also very popular, including Harvest Breakfast, Reserve Release Dinner, Winter Benchmark Tasting, Bring Your Favourite Bottle, Spring Long Table Lunch and Xmas BBQ.
Faber Vineyards also caters for weddings, seminars, cocktail parties and large sit-down dinners.
Faber Vineyard is open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 11 are- 4 pm.
2. Sandalford
One of the most well-known wineries in the Swan Valley, Sandalford Winery is also one of the best. So if you want to try something a little different, why not book yourself in for a wine cruise?
Leaving Perth at 9.45 am, you’ll cruise up the Swan River and arrive by boat. How glam. Enjoy a delicious lunch at Sandalford before cruising back to town.
This is one of the nearest wineries to Perth. It is just a 20-minute drive away. Based at Caversham, in the Swan Valley, Sandalford is one of Western Australia’s oldest producers of premium wine.
Stroll through the lush vineyards or take a multilingual tour behind the scenes of this working winery.
A lovely lunch awaits you under a leafy canopy of century-old vines.
By the way, those of you who have young children are also encouraged to bring out the kids and let them try out the fantastic new nature play area at the Estate.
Experience beautiful vineyard views whilst enjoying Executive Chef Alan Spagnolo’s new menus and outstanding dishes incorporating fresh regional produce and innovative Australian cuisine blended perfectly with superb Sandalford wines and an extensive selection of cocktails and spirits draught beer, ciders and many others.
This large winery is in a beautiful setting with rolling lawns and manicured gardens. Enjoy a superb lunch in the restaurant under the leafy canopy of old vines.
Go behind the scenes of this working winery with a tour or head straight for the excellent stuff and sniff, swirl and sip your way through a fun tasting at the cellar door.
The Sandalford Bar and Restaurant is open for lunch Monday through Sunday from 11.30 am onwards and for drinks and dinner on Friday and Saturday evenings until late.
Behind the global brand of Sandalford Wines lies a rich and fascinating history.
Sandalford’s establishing estate at Caversham, Swan Valley, had its genesis in 1840 and coincided with both European settlements in the burgeoning colony of Perth and the birth of Western Australia’s world-famous wine industry.
Queen Victoria granted John Septimus Roe, Western Australia’s first Surveyor-General, 4,000 acres of land on the riverbanks at West Swan in honour of his 57 years of service to the Commonwealth.
He named the property Sandalford after a priory in Berkshire, England. – his original home. Among J S Roe’s significant legacy was the setting aside of Kings Park and laying out the towns of Perth and Fremantle.
Roe and his wife Matilda had 13 children, and Sandalford was left to his eldest son James Broun Roe. Upon J.B. Roe’s death, Sandalford passed to his son John Frederick Roe, who took a keen interest in the fertile lands of the estate.
A fascinating memoir by Frederick Logue, the son of Sandalford Estate’s manager in the early 1900s, illustrates this significant era. Sandalford was the Swan Valley’s pioneering agrarian estate with cropping, cattle grazing, vegetables, extensive vineyards, and fruit orchards.
The property hummed to seasonal rhythms – Summer stone fruit picking was followed by harvesting grapes until late Autumn when the currants, sultanas and raisins were dried on wire netting racks, and the yearly task of seducing the soil into producing the next crop began all over.
An early emphasis was on table grapes for the local market. John Septimus had experimented with all the varieties that found their way to the new colony – many from South Africa – and the most suited to the estate’s terroir thrived.
Muscats, Malagas, Frontignacs, Chasselas and Ohanez, a thick-skinned Spanish grape which proved highly suitable for export, were harvested by hand in what young Logue described as a pursuit of excellence where bunches were handled in such a way as not to disturb the grape’s natural bloom’.
A horse-drawn lorry collecting the total cases supported the labour of picking. Table grapes positioned in the open, overflowing jarrah boxes were carted to metropolitan markets the evening of the day they were packed.
Sandalford’s export grapes were the ‘aristocrats of the vineyard.’ J.F. Roe was the first of the Swan Valley vignerons to engage overseas markets and pioneered cork dust to preserve grapes during the long sea transits.
The picking of the wine grapes – Shiraz, Verdelho, Cabernet Sauvignon and Frontignac – was a relatively straightforward matter; the bunches were left on the vines until a simple test revealed they had reached their desired sugar content. Next, the grapes were transferred by horse lorry and later an imposing Chevrolet truck to the nearby winery where Roe oversaw pressing and bottling.
The estate survived the Depression because it was both well diversified and well managed. Commercial winemaking accelerated during the 1940s after World War II.
Migrants – particularly Croatians and Italians – had begun to come to the Swan Valley after the first war. The second wave was particularly promising for the wine industry as the immigrants brought new knowledge and techniques.
The estate flourished, and wines produced from its vines satisfied the local community’s requirements and further afield as the region’s reputation grew.
The winemaker at Sandalford Wines from the mid-1960s to the late 1970s was Dorham Mann, son of famous winemaking pioneer Jack Mann. Under Dorham’s advice, the Roe family evaluated expanding into the Margaret River region in South Western Australia.
This area had earlier been assessed by University of WA viticultural scientist Dr John Gladstones as being an ideal climate and terroir for growing premium wine grapes, with its general conditions likened to the famed region of Bordeaux in France.
Based on this, the Roe family purchased a 300-hectare property at Wilyabrup, planted vines in 1970, and joined a handful of others in pioneering Western Australia’s second classic wine region – a destination now recognised on the world stage for excellent Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay with a developing reputation for Shiraz.
The 1990s heralded a new era for Sandalford Wines. WA’s Prendiville family was already immersed in tourism and hospitality when they identified Sandalford Wines as a perfect fit for their growing portfolio of iconic businesses.
In 1992, the Prendivilles successfully acquired Sandalford and devised a plan to revitalise the 160-year-old Western Australian brand. After spending 6 million dollars redeveloping the company’s facilities, their vision of a business that produces wines of distinction and has the perfect synergy of wine and tourism has come to fruition.
With a declared passion for creating excellent wines, Debra and Peter Prendiville and their family continue to bring innovations from around the world to Sandalford.
Their travels broadened distribution to dozens of uncommon wines, such as China, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Norway, and expanded traditional markets into Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai.
In one of Australia’s most sustainable wineries at Caversham, Swan Valley, Sandalford creates today’s collection of Prendiville, Estate Reserve, Margaret River Range and Element award-winning wines from its two fertile vineyards. With advanced viticultural practises and a progressive winemaking team, the Sandalford brand enjoys a long-standing reputation for quality and exceeding expectations at every price point.
John Septimus Roe would have been amazed – and very likely proud – to know today wines from his founding estate are exported to over 40 countries around the globe.
3. Mandoon Estate
The scenery around the Mandoon Estate is quite magnificent. It is serene, colourful and seemingly ever-changing. It is a beautiful escape from the city and just 25 minutes from Perth.
Settled on the banks of the Swan in the 1840s, Mandoon is an iconic destination for the region with a cellar door, fine dining restaurant, outdoor deli, microbrewery, gallery, and kids play area.
Settled by John Septimus Roe soon after establishing the Swan River Colony, Mandoon Estate has significant heritage. In the language of the local aboriginals, it means “place of many trees.”
The picturesque ground is complete with a kid’s play area and gallery located in the property’s original homestead, cellar door, microbrewery and various eating facilities, making it a popular destination for locals and tourists looking to unwind.
In the words of Sir James Stirling: “The richness of the soil, the bright foliage of the shrubs, the majesty of the surrounding trees, the abrupt and red coloured banks of the River occasionally seen, and the view of the blue summits of the mountains from which we were not far distant, made the scenery around this spot as beautiful as anything or kind I had ever witnessed.”
Mandoon Estate is located just 30 minutes from Perth CBD and accessible by road and river, or just a scenic helicopter flight away! Or, for the ultimate weekend away, stay in one of 32 beautifully appointed rooms at the Colony.
For relaxed yet refined dining with lovely views of the grounds, book a table at the restaurant. Experts are on hand to help you pair wines with your food. Then, for a more in-depth tasting, head to the cellar door, where the friendly and knowledgeable staff will explain the winemaking techniques while you sample a range of varietals.
For something more casual, grab a blanket and have a picnic on the lawn and check out the homestead brewery. You can even extend your stay by booking a room on the estate and making a night of it. Waking up surrounded by vines and nature is really something special.
A block of Verdelho was first planted in 1895 and still produces grapes today, making it one of the oldest commercially used vineyards in Western Australia.
The winery has only been producing wine since 2010, all of which can be enjoyed at the award-winning cellar door.
The focus is on creating a boutique range of premium wines from well-preserved low-yielding vineyards in the Swan Valley and other regions. Varieties include Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Verdelho, Riesling, Chardonnay, Grenache, Cabernet, Cabernet Merlot and Shiraz.
Executive chef Michael Hartnell oversees the fine dining restaurant offering a modern Australian menu. For a more casual experience, there’s an outdoor deli and bar offering pizza, roast meat on the spit and gourmet sausages, all located next to the children’s playground and gallery.
The ‘Homestead’ microbrewery remains the only brewery of its kind in Australia, using German manufactured Schulz brewing equipment to produce unique craft ales and cider.
Stunning grounds, a purpose-built function centre and a private wine tasting cellar make it possible to cater for all needs: a casual meal, intimate dinner, private tastings, wedding or gala ball.
A range of experiences can be organised in advance, including corporate team building, bush tucker tasting packages, private tours, river cruises and scenic chopper flights. Extend your stay at the new 32 room luxe accommodation – The Colony.
Enjoy one of 32 beautifully appointed rooms overlooking the historic Verdelho vines and the banks of the Swan.
This is the perfect base from which to explore the valley, be it a lazy day on the Estate, a leisurely lunch, gourmet ramble and gallery hopping around the Valley, or bushwalking and mountain biking in the nearby national parks.
4. Millbrook Winery
Millbrook Winery is a boutique winery situated in the historic town of Jarrahdale, just 50 minutes southeast of Perth. It is located at picturesque Chestnut Farm, nestled among virgin jarrah forests, with stunning vistas of the rolling landscape.
Millbrook Winery is a boutique winery situated in the historic town of Jarrahdale in the Perth Hills wine region. It is about 50 minutes outside of Perth. The views of the rolling countryside are stunning and tranquil.
Just 50 minutes from Perth, this picture-perfect estate is one of WA’s most awarded destinations, known primarily for its Gourmet Traveller Top 100 restaurant that grows most of its produce onsite.
Millbrook Winery has been specifically designed for small-batch, quality wine production. The flagship wines produced under the Millbrook label are made from the very best fruit throughout Western Australia.
These wines are of superb quality and produced from small batches of individually styled fruit, only available in limited quantities.
This is a beautiful place to relax and unwind with some elegant wines. The restaurant serves dishes made with the spoils of the winery’s orchard and heirloom vegetable garden for a lovely lunch. If you want a more casual dining experience, enjoy a picnic basket in a secluded corner of the picturesque estate.
Want to learn more about the wines made here? You can sample a large variety of wines from both Millbrook and the Fogarty Wine Group in the tasting room. Capture a seat by the roaring fire if you can.
The tasting room has a range of wines available either for tasting or purchase by glass or bottle.
To complement the fine wines, their innovative chef offers a delicious selection of modern Australian cuisine, or gourmet picnic baskets (available spring and summer), for your enjoyment. The menu changes on a seasonal basis to take advantage of local fresh produce, including heirloom vegetables and fruit from Chestnut Farm.
The attraction to the Perth Hills was the uncanny similarities to the Northern Rhône region. Shiraz and Viognier were chosen as the flagship varieties and have become excellent examples of both styles.
The fruit grown on the Estate is high quality with low yields, a core objective and a small batch winemaking approach is followed.
Together with the iconic Lake’s Folly vineyard in the Hunter Valley, Evans and Tate in Margaret River, Deep Woods Estate in Margaret River and Smithbrook Wines in Pemberton, Millbrook forms part of the Fogarty Wine Group.
The Millbrook restaurant is rated one of the top restaurants in WA by the West Australian Good Food Guide (2018) and is a Gourmet Traveller Top 100 Australian Restaurant (2018). Head Chef Guy Jeffreys is known for his dedicated ‘garden to plate philosophy.
When he’s not in the kitchen, he is in the Millbrook Estate garden, selecting fruit, vegetables and herbs from the more than 100 varieties he grows there. Throughout 2017, Millbrook Restaurant didn’t place a single order for vegetables! Open for lunch Thursday to Monday. Bookings are essential.
For something less formal, pre-book a picnic hamper filled with an array of seasonal snacks and treats to enjoy on the estate’s stunning grounds.
Enjoy casual dining in the tranquillity and beauty of Millbrook, on the deck with sweeping views, or find your own picnic spot by the lake, or in the winter, relax by the fire in the welcoming tasting room or restaurant.
5. La Fattoria
Meaning ‘the farm’ in Italian, indulge in a wine flight of distinct Italian wines and antipasto or join Nonna’s Family lunch at this lovely estate 30 minutes from Perth, where everyone is la famiglia!
La Fattoria is home to three generations of Sicilian and British heritage still living and working on their 25-acre property in the beautiful Perth Hills.
Originally an orchard for stone fruit, pears and apples, the La Fattoria vineyard was established in 2012 by the Radice family to plant 11 Italian varieties. By nature of their native climates, Italian types are well suited to Australia’s warm and dry grape-growing conditions, like Perth Hills.
The Radice family diversified from orcharding to include 5 acres of vineyard in 2011 and now produce over ten varieties of Italian wine grapes. These Italian wines are available from their cellar door located in Pickering Brook.
Just 35 minutes out of Perth is a slice of Italy. La Fattoria is an Italian food and wine experience on a family-owned property in scenic Pickering Brook.
There are two dining experiences at La Fattoria – Nonna’s Family Table and Pick-A-Platter. The Nonna’s Family Table Experience is a set course long lunch as a tribute to Nonna, who pioneered this property over 75 years ago. It is enjoyed at tables with views over the vineyard and orchard.
The Pick a Platter is a less formal dining experience centred around antipasto delights of your own choosing. Best enjoyed with a glass of wine and a picnic rug on the grassed area, or book ahead for an outdoor terraced table.
When we found out La Fattoria was home to a winery as well as a delicious Italian dining experience, we squealed in delight.
The legends squeeze their grapes over at Myattsfield, and they’ve got several delectable wines available for purchase (and tasting) at their cellar door. So book lunch at Nonna’s Family Table, grab some vino and enjoy the view.
In Italy, wine is typically served with food during family gatherings. With this philosophy in mind, the La Fattoria cellar door showcases its wines as wine flights, available with or without traditional antipasto, and always accompanied by a friendly chat with the winery’s family.
‘Conversation with Italy’ wine flights are $10 per person and include piccolo antipasto and tastings of five wines.
Choose the type of cultural experience to suit your mood. Then, relax with a wine flight of distinct Italian wines accompanied by an antipasto platter and enjoy alfresco.
For something more hearty, grab a seat at Nonna’s family table and indulge in a leisurely lunch of seasonal, rustic dishes washed down with perfectly matched wines.
A tasting at the cellar door is a great way to learn more about La Fattoria’s wines. Drinking Italian varieties which express the soil and climate of Western Australia is a memorable experience.
La Fattoria is home to one of WA’s widest Italian wine ranges, with varieties including Barbera, Sparkling Vermentino, Fiano, Sangiovese, Vermentino, Biancone, Sparkling Brachetto, Nebbiolo, Sparkling Pignoletto, Primitivo and Sagrantino.
Enjoy lunch just like Nonna makes it at the estate’s cosy trattoria, featuring a set menu of delectable Italian dishes designed to be shared among loved ones. In addition, the culinary experience includes a wine tasting and a rustic Italian menu created from locally sourced, seasonal produce.
Alternatively, select a range of antipasto items with La Fattoria’s ‘pick your own platter’ or homemade coffee and cake. Open Thursday to Sunday 11:30 am to 4 pm.
Experience grape-picking during the vineyard’s harvest to gain an enjoyable insight into the estate’s winemaking process. Join the ‘La Famiglia’ club online to gain access to these exclusive events.
6. Myattsfield Vineyard
Nestled in the picturesque Bickley and Carmel Valleys of the Perth Hills wine region a mere 30 minutes from Perth is the family-operated Myattsfield Vineyard.
Myattsfield Vineyards are run by young winemakers Josh and Rachael Davenport with some of the most beautiful surroundings.
Along with their regular drops all the Hills’ folk love, they’re selling a delicious Mediterranean-style wine, Mourvedre, which complements food perfectly (that’s what we like to hear). Myattsfield also runs a range of workshops ranging from disgorging to cheese and wine pairing.
The Bickley Valley offers a warm, elevated climate quite different to the coastal regions. At the Cellar Door, you will get to experience locally grown varieties such as Verdelho, Mourvedre, Touriga, Tempranillo and Durif, alongside Australian favourites such as Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot.
The varieties growing here are Verdelho, Mourvedre, Touriga, brown muscat and Durif alongside shiraz, cabernet sauvignon, merlot and Petit Verdot. With an extensive range of wines, the best and most enjoyable way to fully appreciate them is to take a guided tasting.
Knowledgeable and passionate experts will guide you through what is in your glass whilst telling you all about their winemaking techniques. Afterwards, you can retire to the veranda and relax with more wine and local cheeses and take in the splendid views of the valley. It’s most agreeable here.
7. Talijancich Wines
Established in 1932, Talijancich Wine‘s third-generation winemakers have perfected their craft in premium wines from a biodynamically grown vineyard.
Discover some of Australia’s finest, internationally-awarded fortified wines and liquors at the homely cellar door of this three-generation winemaking family.
Croatian-born Jim Talijancich and his wife Ljucibica purchased this Swan Valley property in 1932 and began making fortified wine from Muscat and Shiraz. In those early years, Times were tough and made more challenging upon Jim’s passing when his son Peter was just 13 years old.
Peter ceased schooling immediately to work with his mother on the vineyard, the horse and plough becoming one of his new regular tasks. Peter led all operations and winemaking for over 50 years until he passed Talijancich onto his son James and wife Hilda in 1998.
Shiraz from old vines and Verdelho produce vibrant wines with long-term cellaring potential. However, the only estate-grown fruit is hand-picked and used to produce fine wines, and traditional winemaking methods are still used.
It was the first vineyard in Western Australia to achieve biodynamic certification, and all current vintages are vegan friendly.
Within 30 minutes of leaving Perth, you can be sipping full-bodied whites and earthy, savoury reds at Talijancich Wines, the first vineyard in Western Australia to achieve biodynamic certification.
The wines here are made solely from Swan Valley fruit, and the aged Verdelho is a thing of beauty. So grab a bottle and an accompaniment of local cheeses and sit out on the deck and admire the views.
Talijancich Wines produces luscious, internationally-awarded liqueurs, full-bodied whites and earthy, savoury reds. Originally famous for Muscat and Tokay liqueur, the fortified range has expanded to include Verdelho, Pedro Ximenes liqueurs and aged Tawny.
Talijancich has a long-term reputation as a fortified wine specialist. Their range includes a 30 Year Old Rare Tawny, Muscat and Pedro Ximenez Liqueur.
There is also a selection of still red and white wines, including a beautiful Verdelho and an old-vine Shiraz. The vineyard follows bio-dynamic, organic principles.
To sample more of the range, the cellar door holds tastings where you can enjoy reds, whites and fortified wines.
Think of it as a way of dipping your toe in the water of wine. When you find a favourite, make sure you stock up on a few bottles before you leave.
The cellar door is located in their converted winery homestead, offering a relaxed setting with lovely views. It is open from 10.30 am to 4.30 pm on all days, except Tuesday.
Small group tastings and tours are available with prior booking. However, this is one tasting that needs to be taken slowly.