In a nutshell... fantastic!
The first white variety to ripen and therefore pick here is usually Chardonnay and this year was no exception with hand harvesting starting on January 12. The fruit was in pristine condition with perfect chemistry which means the sugar levels and the acidity are hitting the sweet spots of where we want them, coupled with great flavours. The same played out with Albarino, Verdelho and Semillon. Some of these whites are all still fermenting. We use a mixture of stainless steel tanks and for other wines where we want a bit of influence from the fermentation vessel we use oak and concrete. The oak is French and we choose a mixture of new and older, smaller barriques and larger puncheons to manage how much impact we want it to have. Our concrete tanks are from the Dolomites in the North of Italy, renowned for their mineral content and help build texture and complexity in the wine.
Interview
An update from our family farm in Broke Fordwich, with news from the vineyard, kitchen garden and restaurant.
Harvest Report - 2026
Early indications are all pointing towards balanced, outstanding wines with great varietal focus, and vineyard personality.
The reds this year, were nothing like Andrew Margan has seen in his 40 years of making wine in the Hunter Valley. They are incredible!
The density and brightness of colour with such moderate alcohols are great signs for an excellent batch of wines. Our yields were quite low, which is a shame because we will have less to enjoy, but we would always trade quantity for quality and that's what we have from vintage 2026.
Keep an eye out for the Ceres Hill Barbera, Fordwich Hill Shiraz and Saxonvale Cabernet Sauvignon in particular. Wines will be outstanding this vintage.
Last in to the winery was the Botryis Semillon and those ugly-delicous grapes are fermenting away nicely in the cellar and will soon become liquid gold!
The reds this year, were nothing like Andrew Margan has seen in his 40 years of making wine in the Hunter Valley. They are incredible!
The density and brightness of colour with such moderate alcohols are great signs for an excellent batch of wines. Our yields were quite low, which is a shame because we will have less to enjoy, but we would always trade quantity for quality and that's what we have from vintage 2026.
Keep an eye out for the Ceres Hill Barbera, Fordwich Hill Shiraz and Saxonvale Cabernet Sauvignon in particular. Wines will be outstanding this vintage.
Last in to the winery was the Botryis Semillon and those ugly-delicous grapes are fermenting away nicely in the cellar and will soon become liquid gold!
Restaurant and Cellar Door
Meanwhile back at the Margan ranch... the Restaurant and Cellar Door have had a busy summer season welcoming our guests for tasting flights and tasty farm-to-table meals. The Kitchen Garden and Orchard, was established in 2007 and now includes olive groves, estate-reared lambs, bees, and free-range chickens. Our farm to table menus are created around what we harvest from our property to maintain a hyper- local and seasonal focus.
Speaking of, we have had a menu refresh with our guests now able to enjoy a la carte dining with more menu options for you to choose from!
Book a guided tour with us and explore the garden, vineyard and winery before you settle into lunch.
Speaking of, we have had a menu refresh with our guests now able to enjoy a la carte dining with more menu options for you to choose from!
Book a guided tour with us and explore the garden, vineyard and winery before you settle into lunch.
Margan Experiences
Margan Dining and Tasting Offerings
At Margan we offer many different tasting and dining option. Take a look at our different offerings
