Beyond the Big Names: Margaret River’s Small Family Winery Trail

Behind every bottle produced on the Margaret River Small Family Winery Trail is a family story. In an increasingly globalised wine world, small family wineries offer something rare — authenticity.

Most of the wineries on the Small Family Winery Trail are single-estate vineyards, meaning the grapes are grown, harvested and made into wine on the same property. Production is intentionally small, allowing winemakers to focus on quality and individual terroir expression rather than volume.

The Small Family Winery Trail is a celebration of the Margaret River region’s smaller wine producers, those passionate families who have chosen a hands-on approach to growing grapes and making wine, and every wine they make tells a story. For visitors to a small family owned winery, you will be welcomed warmly as guests rather than just another customer.

While the Margaret River region is internationally renowned for its iconic wine brands like Leeuwin Estate, Howard Park and Vasse Felix, the Small Family Winery Trail offers a different perspective on the region. The Trail invites visitors to slow down, take the road less travelled and discover the people, places and philosophies behind some of the region’s small wine producers.

What is a Small Winery?

A small winery can be defined in Australia as a winery crushing up to 500 tonnes of grapes in a year, or there’s another definition that has small wineries producing less than 10,000 cases a year.

Some of the wineries on the Small Family Winery Trail are producing smaller volumes of wine than this, and many could be referred to as being a ‘micro’ winery as they are making less than 1500 cases a year. Another term that is often used to describe a small wine producer is artisan.

You will hear the term ‘small batch wines’ mentioned a lot at each of these wineries when you visit. Small batch means small volumes of hand-crafted wines, often made using minimal intervention, traditional winemaking practices. In a nutshell, this means delicious wines made simply and well that are enjoyable to drink.

Meet the Makers When You Visit a Small Family Winery

The 8 wineries on the Small Family Winery Trail are united by a shared commitment to craftsmanship, sustainability and authenticity. They are family-owned and operated, with the people who grow the grapes actively involved in every stage of the grape growing and winemaking process.

The cellar doors are intimate, personal and relaxed. Conversations in the cellar door often take place with the owner or a family member who may also be the winemaker, or the vineyard manager. This gives visitors the opportunity to learn not only about wine, but also about the stories, challenges and rewards of life running a small vineyard and winery.

The Hidden Gems on the Small Family Winery Trail

Each family owned winery on the trail offers something unique, and for visitors, this creates a wine experience that feels genuine, educational and memorable.

The Trail covers the Margaret River region from top to bottom, starting at Chapman Hill close to Busselton, and finishing in Karridale. As you journey along the trail, you’ll discover a collection of boutique wineries, each with its own story, personality and approach to winemaking.

Some are hidden among forests and valleys, others overlook rolling vineyards and farming landscapes.

Visitors can experience everything from organically managed vineyards and minimal-intervention winemaking to traditional basket pressing and small-batch winemaking practices. Many wines are produced in limited quantities and some may only be available at cellar door, making each stop a chance to discover something truly unique.

Sustainable Farming in Action on the Small Family Winery Trail – Guinea Fowl in the Vineyard at Whicher Ridge Wines

Slow Down and Sip: Enjoy the Journey on the Small Family Winery Trail

One of the joys of exploring the Small Family Winery Trail is that each of the cellar doors on the Trail will be different, and your journey ends up being much more than just a wine tasting experience.

You may find yourself wandering through a sensory garden, chatting with a winemaker in the vineyard, enjoying local produce alongside a tasting flight or discovering a wine that is only sold at the cellar door.

For many visitors following the Small Family Winery Trail becomes less about ticking wineries off a list and more about collecting stories, meeting passionate locals, and discovering where different wine flavours and winemaking styles come from.

There is something special about walking into a cellar door and being greeted by the person who planted the vines, made the wine, and is about to pour the wine into your tasting glass.

After completing the Trail, you will have gained a deeper connection to the land, the seasons and the people behind the label, as well as an eclectic and tasty selection of small batch wines to take home with you!

Margaret River Small Family Winery Trail Map

Stop 1: Whicher Ridge – Wine Sensory Garden + Immersive Wine Experiences

Tucked away among the rolling countryside in the Whicher Range a 20km drive south of Busselton, is Whicher Ridge which offers a refreshing introduction to the Small Family Winery Trail.

Owned and operated by vigneron and winemaker couple Neil and Cathy Howard, Whicher Ridge is well known for it’s wine sensory garden and thoughtful approach to sustainable viticulture. Their philosophy is simple: grow great fruit, tread lightly on the earth and create wines that bring people together around food and conversation.

What makes a visit to Whicher Ridge rather special for 2 reasons. The first is that each and every tasting and wine experience is guided by Cathy the winemaker, and the second reason is the Wine Sensory Garden. This very uniquely designed garden is the first one of its kind in Australia, and it has been carefully designed to help visitors explore the aromas, flavours and textures found in different varietal wines.

The wine experiences at Whicher Ridge are immersive, approachable and often surprisingly enlightening. The Pick + Sip experience is the best way to learn about the small batch wines made here and how the wine sensory garden has been created.

Whether you are a seasoned wine enthusiast or simply curious to learn more, Whicher Ridge helps demystify wine in a way that is engaging and fun. If you’re not so much into your wines, but love gardening or cooking, a wander around the wine sensory garden is something not be missed.

Whicher Ridge is a dog friendly winery as Polly the resident wine dog will ‘tell’ you when she meets and greets you in the carpark!

Neil and Cathy Howard from Whicher Ridge Wines on the Small Family Winery Trail

Stop 2: Cape Naturaliste Vineyard – History, Biodynamics + Dogs of Cape Nat

Next stop on the Small Family Winery Trail is Cape Naturaliste Vineyard, a 48km drive NE from Whicher Ridge.

Craig and Jen Brent-White own and operate Cape Naturaliste. Craig and Jen’s passion and dedication to biodynamics is the driving force behind how they manage their vineyard and make their wines. They also share a love of the sea, the Yallingup region where they live, and animals, which shines through when you visit.

The winery is located in a picturesque valley close to Smiths Beach. The cellar door is in a stone milking shed adjacent to a 19th Century stone inn which overlooks their vineyard. The Inn was once the staging point for the coaches on the Perth to Margaret River route.

Cape Naturaliste is dog friendly too, and every dog that visits is given a treat and photographed for the ever-growing Dogs of Cape Nat Vineyard wall of fame. The photo wall is very well known around the region!

Stop 3: Windows Estate – Passionate About Terroir + Organic

The next stop is Windows Estate which is located 6kms south of Cape Naturaliste Vineyard. Windows Estate is owned and operated by Chris and Joanne Davies and it combines exceptional wines with a strong commitment to environmental stewardship.

Windows Estate is a picturesque property featuring rolling vineyards and lawned gardens. The estate reflects a philosophy of balance between nature, farming and winemaking.

The couple’s philosophy centres firmly on strictly following regenerative, organic farming practices, and the property is certified as Southern Cross Certified Organic 20109.

Chris has a laser-like focus on extracting the very best from the soil and from the grapes, and crafts his wines with careful attention to truly expressing the vineyard’s unique character.

A visit here offers a peaceful and reflective experience, where the connection between the terroir at Windows Estate and the wines made there is central to every tasting.

If you would like a deeper dive into Windows Estate, then book into their Farm/Vineyard + Tasting Tour. All wine sales are through cellar door only.

Stop 4: Menzies Vineyard – High Density Vineyard + Scottish Heritage

This stop is at one of Margaret River’s newest cellar doors, which opened in 2025. The Menzies Vineyard is 13 km SE of Windows Estate. It is owned and operated by Rob and Emma Menzies.

The first thing that you will notice when you drive in is how close the vine rows are planted to each other, and how low the vines are. This is what a high density vineyard looks like, and the Menzies Vineyard is one of only a few high-density vineyards in Australia.

The vineyard has row spacings of 1mtr wide, and vines planted 1mtr apart in each row. High density vines are planted at over four times the density of a standard vineyard. Most standard vineyards have 3-metre-wide rows with a vine planted every 2 metres.

Prepare yourself for a very personalised wine tasting experience with Rob which will also include a tour of the winery and vineyard.

It’s yet another dog friendly small family owned winery.

Stop 5: Cape Grace Wines –  Rustic Shed in the Forest + Early Settler History

The next stop is Cape Grace which is a 17km drive south of Windows Estate. It’s owned and operated by Karen and Robert Karri-Davies. Their vineyard produces small batches of handcrafted and basket pressed wines.

The Karri-Davies family has been in the Margaret River region since 1875, and the passion that Robert and Karen have for their vineyard and their wines, are a reflection of these historical family connections to the area.

Like other wineries on the small family winery trail, the wines made by Cape Grace are a true reflection of traditional art of winemaking and their local terroir. Every bottle they sell is from their vineyard which is in a unique ‘forest’ site where native trees shield the vines and biodiversity thrives.

An added bonus for visitors to Cape Grace Wines is that the vineyard is surrounded by native bush, and in spring, the wildflowers are spectacular!

Stop 6: Brown Hill Estate – Gold Fields Family History + Tastings in the Winery

The next stop is Brown Hill Estate, which is 26km south west of Cape Grace Wines, close to the small town of Rosabrook. Brown Hill Estate is owned and operated by the Bailey family. The family includes Jim (sadly recently deceased) and his wife Gwen, and their son Nathan along with his wife Chiara.

The Baileys have a close connection to Kalgoorlie. The name ‘Brown Hill’ was the claim that made the Golden Mile famous, and four generations of Baileys lived in the Goldfields with close ties to Brown Hill, so it seemed only natural to give the winery the same name as it’s an important part of the family’s history in WA.

Many of Brown Hill’s wines take their names from famous gold mines, or miners, in the Kalgoorlie area.

The cellar door is inside the winery itself, with a jarrah slab resting on a couple of oak barrels in Brown Hill’s low-key tasting room, so visitors can observe the winemaking process as it happens around them throughout the year.

For a deeper dive into Brown Hill, then book into their Golden Mile Tasting or the Chardonnay + Cabernet Sauvignon masterclass.

Look out for Obie, the friendly wine dog who keeps an eye on everything in and around Brown Hill Estate. Brown Hill is also another dog friendly winery.

Stop 7: Walsh & Sons – Lo-Fi Biodynamic Wines + The Farm House

Second last stop is Walsh & Sons, located 19km west of Brown Hill Estate. It’s owned and operated by the Walsh family. Walsh & Sons, (probably more accurate to call them Walsh & Family!) was created by partners Ryan Walsh and  Freya Hohnen which celebrates the dynamics of their large energetic extended families. Some of their wines are named after nieces and nephews who’ve all been a part of the journey.

Ryan and Freya are all about making minimal intervention wines which have maximum flavour. By using traditional methods in their vineyards and low intervention winemaking techniques, they aim to make expressive styles that are fun, youthful and different to the mainstream.

They have teamed up with producers of free-range, handmade smallgoods and artisan meats, the Farm House. The front-of-house is the cellar door but behind the scenes, they have the inner workings of a family-owned butchery, viewable from the tasting room most weekdays.

Walsh & Sons is another dog friendly winery! If you would to stay a little longer here and grab a bite to eat, The Wine & Graze experience will keep you going for your next stop!

Stop 8: Glenarty Road – Farm to Table Dining + Farming History

Final stop on the trail is Glenarty Road, which is owned and operated by Sasha and Ben McDonald. It’s a 44 km drive south from Walsh & Sons, just a short drive east of the town of Karridale.

Their fifth generation family farm has 240 acres of fertile land, things just want to grow there. Wine is only part of the story for visitors to Glenarty Road. There are fruit trees, vegetable gardens, over a thousand sheep, a hop field, a restaurant and cellar door.

Ben and Sasha’s paddock-to-plate restaurant uses lamb and pork grown on the farm, as well as fresh seasonal produce from their orchard and gardens.

For a deeper dive into their wines, book in to one of their wine experiences, like Vino in the Vines or the garden experience, Raised Regeneratively.

Tips for Planning Your Small Family Winery Trail Adventure

The best way to experience the Small Family Winery Trail is to allow plenty of time, and our recommendation is that the Trail is to plan to do it over a couple of days so that you aren’t rushing.

Taking your time at each stop allows you to appreciate the unique character of each small family owned winery. It’s your opportunity to meet and chat with the owners and vignerons, to dive deeper into their wines and their unique place by booking into a wine experience, and to discover their small batch wines which may well become your new favourites!

Whether you’re visiting the Margaret River region for the first time or returning to explore new places, the Small Family Winery Trail offers an opportunity to experience the region and it’s wines through the eyes of the families who call it home.