THE STORY
Cath Oates – The winemaker
I first made Oates Ends in 2000, fresh out of Uni, in the shed on the farm to share with friends and family. The grapes used came from the ends of the rows that the machine harvester didn't pick, hence the name and everyone did their bit, Mum picking the grapes, Dad being cellar hand and everyone pitching in for bottling. Fast forward almost two decades and after a rewarding international winemaking career I decided it was time to return home and focus on making wines from Wilagri that really captured the essence of this special vineyard.
I concentrate on capturing the incredible perfume and elegance that comes it gives, by keeping winemaking intervention to a minimum and handling the wine as little as possible in the winery.
Russ Oates – The grapegrower
Russ became involved in vineyards after a stint working with a local vineyard contractor in the 1990's. He soon decided to go out on his own and started his successful vineyard management business, looking after some of Margaret River's best premium vineyards.
All of this knowledge has been put into Wilagri vineyard, supplying fruit to some top Cabernet producers in the region and now capturing it in the Oates Ends wines. I love working with Russ, although at times the sibling rivalry comes to a head and I know its time to get out the vineyard for a while.
His philosophy is a great combination of a pragmatic farming approach and the getting the best out of Wilagri, all tempered with a keen sense of protecting the environment he works in, and where he and his young family live.
Wilagri
Stu and Sue Oates have been farming in the area since they met and married in 1966. Stuart comes from many generations of South West farming stock. Sue was a city girl but soon learnt to draft a sheep with the best of them.
Stuart is the jack of all trades, sometimes helping out in the vineyard or with the cellar work, always on the land somewhere if the sun is up.
The Wilagri vineyard was first planted in 1999, growing Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, Chardonnay, Semillon and Sauvignon blanc on complex loam soils over deep well draining gravels, producing fine, elegantly structured wines.
Careful management and hand harvesting allow for the selection of perfectly ripe and clean fruit to make our wines.
Sustainable Philiosophy
Wilagri vineyard is run on sustainable farming principles, with each and every part of the grapegrowing process considered on the basis of the individualilty of the growing season.
Sheep are big part of the move to avoid the use of any herbicides in the vineyard and are also used for leaf plucking to increase air flow and grape health, without the use of tractors or sprays.
Oates Ends and Wilagri Vineyard are both members of Sustainable Winegrowing Australia (SWA) and are working towards accreditation in 2021. SWA is Australia’s national program for grape growers and winemakers to demonstrate and continuously improve their sustainability in the vineyard and winery through the environmental, social and economic aspects of their business.
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