Flametree wines: A must-visit

This excellent producer, owned by the Towner family, leapt onto the Margaret River wine map in 2007.

One could say they did things in reverse – instead of planting vines, waiting a few years for maturity, and then finding an established winery to make the wine, they built a winery and established contracts with quality local vineyards across the region to provide the fruit.

This business model certainly paid off, as they won the prestigious Jimmy Watson Trophy with their very first red wine release.

Subsequently, they gained Cliff Royale as winemaker and manager. He is one of Australia’s most celebrated winemakers, who over 16 years put them on the international wine map.

Currently, winemaking is in the hands of Binh Lim, who has worked with Cliff for the past eight years. Selecting grapes from across the region allows optimal fruit selection within vintages.

Wines are marketed on three levels: the Embers Range, fruit-forward, everyday wines; Flametree Range, regional character and unquestionable quality, the mainstay of Flametree; and SRS (Sub-Regional Series), produced in exceptional vintages and selected from quality parcels of fruit from vineyards across the region, these are wines of supreme character and potential longevity.

Medical Forum readers can get 15% off Flametree Wines for three months with the code IND15.

The wines

SRS Wallcliffe Chardonnay 2024, RRP $95 - Reviewers Pick

My wine of this tasting. Fruit is sourced from the more southern sub-region of Wallcliffe. Sensational. Enticing aromas leap from the glass and immediately indicate a wine of distinction, showing grapefruit, citrus, and wonderful oaky notes. Flavours are beautifully interwoven across the palate, with grapefruit and white peach dominating alongside a fine acidity. It features a mineral backbone with some “Chablis-like” oyster shell on the back palate. An outstanding wine. Drink now or cellar for up to eight years.

Chardonnay 2025, RRP $40

A floral nose for a Chardonnay, with notes of lime and ripe melon. The palate is rounded, generous, and textural, with flavours of grapefruit and Nashi pear. Oak is central to the style without being dominant. Drinking beautifully now and will reward cellaring for three to four years. This wine is great value for money.

Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2025, RRP $28

Consists of 51% Sauvignon Blanc and 49% Semillon. However, the Semillon characters dominate. It features vibrant aromas of gooseberry, green bean, and guava. The palate offers flavours of lime, grapefruit, and dried herbs. A portion of the juice was fermented on grape solids in new French oak, which adds complexity. A mineral backbone and crisp acidity give the wine a clean, refreshing finish. Great current drinking that will cellar for several years.

Shiraz 2023, RRP $36

Features allspice and black pepper aromas. The palate shows mulberry and dark plum. This is a softer Shiraz style, created by gentle extraction, cooler fermentation temperatures, and the use of larger-format seasoned oak. The addition of sun-dried stems adds to the spiciness. Drink now or keep for up to eight years.

Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2023, RRP $35

Fruit is predominantly sourced from the Wilyabrup sub-region, famous for its Cabernet. The nose displays green capsicum, cassis, and a cedary edge. On the palate, the fruit is ripe and fleshy, yet mellow with blackcurrant and plum flavours. The tannins are supple. This is an easy-drinking wine that will cellar well for four to six years.

SRS Wilyabrup Cabernet Sauvignon 2023, RRP $95

A blockbuster of a wine from one of Margaret River’s greatest vintages. It shows a deep, youthful colour, with complex and concentrated aromas of blackcurrant and menthol. Fourteen months of maturation in French barriques (40% new) adds structure and fine-grained tannins to the palate, which is sublime and silky with notes of cassis, black olive, and a touch of eucalyptus. A wine of power and concentration yet crafted with delicacy. A 20-year cellaring wine.