A bottle for Margaret River Cabernet Merlot for $5? That’s right, $5. Seriously, you can’t go wrong – and it’s not a bad drop actually. I reckon it’ll round out and be beautifully smooth in a few years. Even if you don’t love the wine now, at $5 a bottle it’s cheap enough to use it in cooking without getting the guilts.

Zorba and I love The Growers in Margaret River. Every trip ‘down south’, we pop in to their cellar door on Wildwood Road and stock up on wine, our favourite being the dessert Botrytis, and at $45 for a full-sized 750ml bottle, the great value continues.

Sadly, it was announced today that The Growers will be coming to a close. One man behind the label and chief wine maker Phil May said that he might stay working at The Growers if the new owners give him a role, but what he’d really love to do is write a book. Everyone has a good book inside of them, and it’s exciting that the next chapter in Phil’s life may be just that. We wish him the very best with whatever he decides to do come the end of November.

The Growers, 1071 Wildwood Road, Wilyabrup in the Margaret River region, Western Australia

If you are in Margaret River between now and the end of November, I encourage you to pop into The Growers, and besides picking up a case of Margaret River wine for $60 – which in itself sounds too good to be true, here are five reasons to visit:

1. You can taste all their wines before buying – take advantage of it and stock up on great value wines while you can
2. The setting is very picturesque, a long gravel driveway flanked by rows of vines, stopped with a rose bush. In front of the carpark is a pretty dam which you can overlook from a picnic table. Bring some snacks and enjoy the tranquility, and bring your camera
3. Besides great value wine, you can stock up on wonderful Wilura olive oil – which is all we use in our house – it’s gorgeous, buy olive oil soap products, wine and cheese accessories, platters, pottery, and natural honey which we love.
4. The friendly service – just by popping in to The Growers and taking five minutes to chat to Phil about his wines, we’ve gotten to know him and he always welcomes us with a warm friendly hello, like we’re old friends.
5. You won’t find any cheaper Margaret River wine anywhere. And while I don’t believe cheaper is always better, I do believe in value for money, and this is a case point (pun intended)

In the 2013 Wine Companion, James Halliday said (2010 vintage):

Bright crimson-purple; Peppermint Grove is the second label of The Growers, in a classically simple, uncluttered typeface. Perhaps this is why I am taken by the expressive cassis/red fruit simplicity of the wine.

In the Ray Jordan’s WA Wine Guide 2011, he said:

This is made as a simple current drinking red wine. Good red berry and light plum mix on the nose carries seamlessly through to the soft and supple palate. It’s a drink now wine at a good price.

Overlooking the dam at The Growers

Here’s what The Growers released today:

The current manifestation of The Growers is coming to an end.

It is highly likely that we will cease our direct sale distributions on Friday November 20, 2015 in readiness for our departure from the leased winery and cellar door premises a week or so later.

 

The relationship with the landlord remains excellent and the business is as strong as it has ever been but the time has come to close the chapter on my involvement in a business that was initially founded to assist WA grape growers. Without your support, the journey would have ended long ago. Thank you.

 

In the meantime, the recently released Peppermint Grove Cabernet Merlot remains available for purchase and, as it has for a long time now, remains the lowest cost postage inclusive wine offering from Western Australia.

 

As always, I invite you to send any queries that you may have about our wines directly to me, Phil May, the winemaker and co-owner of The Growers; phil@thegrowers.com

 

Click here to download the order form – Full Product List

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