About
The Fire Gully Farm & Vineyard is located in the heart of Willyabrup, Margaret River. Thanks to old vines, ancient gravelly loam soils, regenerative farming practices and coastal influence, the site is truly unique and creates wines that are a reflection of site and place. Owned, produced and tended to by the team at Pierro Margaret River Vineyards.
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The property was named Fire Gully after two large bush fires, in 1952 and 1970, ravaged the gully in the centre of the block. The Fire Gully vineyard is well-hidden from the road with a long, narrow strip flowing back to the main paddocks: so it's pretty much unknown. It is one of the Willyabrup region's most attractive and spectacular vineyards with views from the higher blocks looking over the dam, vineyards and natural bushland.
From 1946 the property was owned and run by Ellis and Margaret Butcher, some of the original pioneers of the region, who planted vines on their farm in 1988. It was purchased by Michael Peterkin of Pierro in 1998. With Michael Peterkin planting further vines on the property in the following years.
Fire Gully is adjacent to Moss Wood and a kilometre from Pierro Vineyards. It is influenced by the brook system that runs through the property and out to the coast four kilometres away. The sea breeze drifts up the brook to the vineyard moderating the summer temperatures.
All of the grapes are hand picked at sunrise and taken in small buckets to the Pierro winery. From here, the team at Pierro craft the wines under the guidance of Dr. Peterkin, The wines are hand made and blended in small batches .The Fire Gully wines express the very essence of Margaret River regionality and quality and are recognised for consistent excellence with each passing vintage.
2024 Sparkling Chenin Blanc
Description
Fire Gully is in the vanguard of premier wineries in the region and consistently produces vibrant, fruit-driven wines of great elegance and style. A family run vineyard with a focus on quality and value, our range is enjoyed throughout Australia and overseas, and offers quintessential Margaret River red, white and sparkling wine styles.
Dr Michael Peterkin of Pierro purchased the nearby Fire Gully property in 1998 and now manages the vineyard, which is also one of the most beautiful and unique properties on the Cape. Attentive, hands-on viticulture and years of experience in the winery has taught us how to create the best wines from high-grade fruit coming in from the vines.
All Fire Gully wines are hand crafted by the highly respected and experienced team at our nearby sister winery, Pierro. The result is a selection of classic Margaret River wines.
Winemaking
The chenin blanc was hand-picked from our original 1988 plantings in Willyabrup, Margaret River. The grapes were picked early in the season, chilled and gently whole bunch pressed prior to fermentation and maturation in tank for 8 months. The Fire Gully vintage sparkling is a made using the traditional method, with fermentation occurring in bottle and maturation occurring on lees in bottle for over 12 months.
2024 Sauvignon Blanc / Semillon
Having two vineyards and two labels, Mike Peterkin is able to offer two distinctly different versions of this classic Margaret River white combination. Complementing the Pierro L.T.C Semillon Sauvignon Blanc in the portfolio is the Fire Gully Sauvignon Blanc Semillon. In contrast to its better known sibling, the Fire Gully Sauvignon Blanc Semillon is unoaked, has more sauvignon blanc (70% ) and is made in an early-drinking style to emphasise its aromatics, freshness and vibrant fruit flavours.
Making this wine involves gentle handling at the winery so that it shows restrained phenolics and tannins. Freshness and purity of flavour are what Mike Peterkin and the Fire Gully team want The fruit is picked in 10 kilogram containers which are stacked on racks and are fork liftable so that the fruit is undamaged by handling. The racks are unloaded at the winery, enter the cool room at one end, are chilled to 5°C and then loaded into the press at that temperature.
The current release of the Fire Gully Sauvignon Blanc Semillon is a superb example of the combination, complex and interesting , with fascinating oyster shell aromatics, intense pure white tropical flavours with schisty minerally notes; powerful, vibrant and tangy, finishing fresh and zesty. Irresistible summer drinking.
2025 Chardonnay
Description
Hand picked gin-gin clone chardonnay from the 20-30 year old vines at the Fire Gully farm and vineyard. Cold pressed, barrel fermented in 2-3 year old barriques where it undergoes regular lees stirring.
Dr Michael Peterkin of Pierro purchased the nearby Fire Gully property in 1998 and now manages the vineyard, which is also one of the most beautiful and unique properties on the cape. Attentive, hands-on viticulture and years of experience in the winery has taught us how to create the best wines from high-grade fruit coming in from the vines.
All Fire Gully wines are hand crafted by the highly respected and experienced team at our nearby sister winery, Pierro. The result is a selection of classic Margaret River wines.
Winemaking
Hand picked, hand sorted, cold pressed and barrel fermented in second and third fill barrels. Ten months in oak with fortnightly lees stirring prior to blending and bottling.
The Winefront review by Gary Walsh
"From a very good Margaret River vintage. 25% new oak. 43% malo. 20-30 year old vines. Here's a richer and more juicy style of Chardonnay with something of a creamy feel, but also has shapely grapefruity acidity to keep it on the rails. Pine-lime, some cedar and spice, generous in flavour, a little chalkiness to texture, offering excellent length with a subtle nutty aftertaste. Generous and good."
93 points
Robert Parker Wine Advocate review by Erin Larkin
"The 2025 Chardonnay is excellent. It is nutty and layered with orchard fruits and salty/mealy notes on the middle palate. The length is good. The wine speaks of Margaret River in its splay of fruit and presence on the palate. These are all great things. This is a lovely wine, as usual."
93 points
2024 Shiraz
Description
Margaret River Shiraz from 30 year old low yielding vines grown in the gravelly loam soils of Willyabrup.
Fire Gully is in the vanguard of premier wineries in the region and consistently produces vibrant, fruit-driven wines of great elegance and style. A family run vineyard with a focus on quality and value, our range is enjoyed throughout Australia and overseas, and offers quintessential Margaret River red, white and sparkling wine styles.
Dr Michael Peterkin of Pierro purchased the nearby Fire Gully property in 1998 and now manages the vineyard, which is also one of the most beautiful and unique properties on the Cape. Attentive, hands-on viticulture and years of experience in the winery has taught us how to create the best wines from high-grade fruit coming in from the vines.
All Fire Gully wines are hand crafted by the highly respected and experienced team at our nearby sister winery, Pierro. The result is a selection of classic Margaret River wines.
Winemaking
Hand picked, sorted and berry sorted prior to being fermented as whole berries in open fermenters. Hand plunged with 14 days on skins prior to pressing and maturing in oak barrique for 12 months.
2023 Cabernets / Merlot
For the first stage of the winemaking process, Mike Peterkin uses a combination of open and closed fermenters and allows the wine six days on skins post-fermentation before transferring it into oak where it undergoes the malolactic fermentation and is matured for about twelve months. To enhance the wine's primary fruit flavours, a majority of mature (rather than new) barriques are used. Blending cabernet sauvignon (65%) and merlot (21%) and Cabernet Franc (14%) gives the wine backbone and tightness of structure while emphasising its smooth, soft texture and fragrance.
Given the great run of vintages of recent years, it's not surprising that there's tremendous consistency from year to year with this red. The current Fire Gully Cab Merlot is showing some restraint on the nose, gently perfumed red berry aromatics, opening onto a palate that has ripe plum and blackcurrant flavours. It is medium to full-bodied, a touch denser than the previous vintage, and so showing more weight, good structure, and gentle grip on the finish. It has the depth and power to reward short term cellaring and the velvety texture and pleasing approachability to make it difficult to resist over the next twelve months.
2022 Cabernet Sauvignon ‘Reserve’
Description
This is the story of Cabernet Sauvignon, the flagship red variety of Margaret River. The original Cabernet vines were introduced to Western Australia between 1836 and 1895, most likely from South Africa. In the 1930s legendary Houghton winemaker Jack Mann took cuttings from selectedold bush-vines in the Swan Valley and established a 1.6 hectare planting known as the
"Houghton Cabernet Block".
He was firmly of the view that grapes from this could be used to make outstanding wine. In the 1960's the Department of agriculture , through several years of evaluation, refined this block and selected the best quality vines, 21 in all from a planting of 2,200. These vines were planted in "foundation blocks" at GinGin in 1970 and at Frankland River in 1973. Over the next 40 years these vines were further evaluated and in 2012 six "super” selections were released.
We have chosen what we consider the best three cabernet selections to form the basis of this wine.
Hand picked, both bunch and berry sorted and fermented in open fermenters as whole berries prior to maturing in oak for 18 months.
Winemaking
Hand picked, bunch and berry selected prior to fermentation as whole berries in open fermenters. Hand plunged with 39 days on skins prior to pressing and maturing in oak barrique for 18 months.
The Real Review by Huon Hooke
"Medium-deep red laced with purple in the rim; the nose is reserved and shy with dusty oak notes, while the palate flavour is bright and incisive, red fruits rather than black, underlined by fresh but harmonious acidity, the finish long and tapered but the overall feel is of elegance and restraint."