Margies Big Day Out, a Margaret River tour

We previously took a short 4 day cruise from Fremantle, Western Australia down to the historic port town of Albany, stopping at Margaret River (via Busselton) and back to Fremantle. This was a great cruise choice for first time cruisers wanting to experience the cruising lifestyle, without being too far from home, combined with an opportunity to take a Margaret River tour.

On our agenda was a visit to Margaret River to sample some of her fine offerings. Wines, beers, ciders, chocolate, cheeses and good old fashioned grub were all waiting to be sampled. We wanted to do a Margaret River tour with a local company that could offer a “good day out” at a fair and reasonable price, so off to Tripadvisor we went. The decision was made, Margies Big Day Out, winner of the prestigious Tripadvisor Certificate of Excellence in 2014. They operate beer, wine and food tours from the heart of the South West, Margaret River. Richard, owner and operator has been in business for the past 9 years offering day trips in the Margaret River region. We had only one request, and that was to get us back to the ship on time. A simple email was sent and we were booked for the Margaret River tour.

Margies Big Day Out arranged for the owner, Richard to meet us at the historic Busselton Jetty in his trusty Toyota shuttle bus where he proceeded to explain the itinerary for the day. First stop was to transfer to the pickup point where we would meet the rest of the tour group in Cowaramup. We had time to visit some of the boutique shops in Cowaramup and sample some fudge at the Candy Cow before we congregated at the pickup point for 11:00am. This was a small, personal tour in a 20 seater bus which arrived ready to set off on our day of adventure. Let the Margaret river tour begin.

The itinerary for our Margaret River tour was cheese tasting at the Margret River Dairy Company then around the corner to our first wine tasting for the day at the Hay Shed Hill. With a quick introduction to the art of wine tasting by our evanescent coach driver, Nyree. Ulf Mueller then proceeded to take us through the tastings with an informative commentary on each of the wines. Next on the list was Fermoy Estate with similar style of wines we proceeded to let our taste buds sing and dance as the numerous samples passed our lips.

Back on the bus, the Margaret River tour continues and we are off to the Bootleg Brewery for lunch with beer and cider tasting. Lunch was a ploughman’s plater made with fresh local produce, and the jugs of beer and cider kept on flowing, much to our delight. With a belly full of food we are bound for Gabriel Chocolate to sample some fine chocolate, and learn the process of chocolate manufacturing. Gabriel Chocolate are one of a few chocolatiers in the area who manufacture their chocolate using raw ingredients.

This Margaret River tour really is a Big Day out, continuing with even with more wine tasting, and this was my favourite, Lenton Brae Estate. We first visited Lenton Brae in early 2003 and later fell in love with their 2003 Late Harvest Cabernet. At the time I didn’t realise it was going to become such a stunning cabernet until after being cellared for nearly 12 years I finally opened my first bottle, wow. It was great to get to see behind the scenes, watching as wines are being tested. Jeanette manages the cellar door and is quite happy to provide the tasting samples.

Last stop for the day, the Cheeky Monkey for some more cider and an opportunity to have a chat with Richard and Nyree. Our Margaret River tour had come to an end and Richard had come to collect us to transfer us back to the cruise ship, Dawn Princess. That ended a relaxing and informative day, leaving us all wanting to return to this region again and again.

We thoroughly enjoyed the day and it appeared the others in our group also had a great time on our Margaret River tour. Today’s itinerary was just one of the many other itinerary’s available from Margies Big Day Out. If you have some special places you would like to visit ask Richard and I’m sure he will try to accommodate your request.

Thank you Nyree for providing the opportunity to be part of your “big day out” adventure, the song choice and humour was most appropriate for the day. A big thank you to Richard for making this the successful business that it is. And yes, he got us back to the ship on time, as promised.

The Margaret River region has over 100 wineries, 8 breweries, a distiller and 100’s of other attractions well worth a visit and be guided by experts like Margies Big Day Out. We’ll be back and we invite all our friends and family to come along and learn about the region on a Margaret River tour, this region truly is a foodie’s paradise.

UPDATE: We enjoyed Hay Shed Hill so much, that on our next visit to Margaret River (and there’s been many), we booked a 5 course degustation lunch at their restaurant Rustico. We enjoyed a refreshing rosé sangria with raspberry and ginger (and I later became acquainted with a Black Spanish Rose – strawberries & Cointreau blended with a twist of Black Sambucca) while checking out the mouth-watering morsels on the menu. We highly recommend their truly decadent dining among a lush vineyard and have since been back several times.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

Have you visited Margaret River? Which place do you want to include in your visit to this gorgeous area?

We have a small favour to ask before you go. Would you please share this post, leave a comment below or just hit the ‘like’ button below? If you want to read more from us why not subscribe to our Newsletter? We won’t spam you or share your personal details. If you’re not already doing so, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or click the Mix, Flipboard or other social media buttons below to share this post with others who might enjoy reading it. What are you waiting for?

*All opinions are our own and we were not financially compensated for this post, however we were provided with a discount.