“Day 2:

Today’s the day of the titans! So fittingly, enjoy a tremendous breakfast at Cape Lodge (also with room service options for the snug) before setting out for the day’s first stop: Moss Wood (by appointment: mosswood.com.au, (08) 9755 6266). When it comes to Margaret River, few producers have maintained a stoic vision quite like Moss Wood. Despite the carnal temptations to construct a luminous cellar door and cash in on the hordes, Moss Wood has kept its head down and its furtive attention on the grand prize: making exquisite, territorial wines.

That said, while Clare and Keith Mugford are pioneers of Margaret River wine – working with cabernet vines planted in 1969 – they have retained a rare vibrancy, a fact manifestly reflected in the wine itself. The pinot noir, planted in 1974, remains one of the only serious propositions of the variety in the region (while Margaret River has the lowest mean temperature of any other bellwether wine region in the country, it remains distinctively Mediterranean with an unmistakable maritime influence …), while the chardonnay has evolved with contemporary tastes: with only partial malolactic fermentation and no lees stirring at all.”