AWARDS & REVIEWS
Jilyara Award Winning Wines of Wilyabrup
Margaret River - South West WA
The Williams' Block - Chardonnay 2022
"William’s Block is the flagship and a barrel selection. It’s a very good wine, steely and tight, still coming around and it will. Now it’s running on a skein of fine acidity leaving in its wake the pink grapefruit, woodsy spices and preserved salted lemon flavours. The palate is lightly layered with some creamy, lemon curd and nutty lees, plus oak but all well integrated. Moreish, savoury and mouth-watering."
HALLIDAY WINE COMPANION - Jane Faulkner
"Wow she is striking! Pretty white florals and a delicate lace of white peach sorbet and rainier cherries. Shaved young ginger, crushed macadamia and glittering sandstone. There is almost a soft oriental note of frankincense and sage. Pineapple hull and lemon balm. A real slipperiness to the long line of acidity, unmarred by heavy oak use. The wine is light on its feet, a bit like tinkerbell but magical in its fruit purity. A chardonnay that makes you feel optimistic and hopeful. Drink now and will cellar well for the next 4-6 years. A wonderful match for angel hair pasta and diamond shell clams."
THE WINE PILOT - Shanteh Wale
"Impressively complex and refined, this is seductively expressed on the nose with ripe nectarine, lemon peel, nougat and savoury pasty characters, followed by a concentrated palate offering excellent depth and seamless flow. It's expansive and wonderfully structured, with a prolonged, alluring finish. At its best: now to 2037."
WINE ORBIT - Sam Kim
Silver Medal - Endeavour Group Margaret River Wine Show 2024
Silver Medal - Perth Royal Wine Show Awards 2024
Silver Medal - IWSC- International Wines & Spirit Competition
The Williams' Block - Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
"Bright red and youthful in appearance. Complex aromas of blackberry, tobacco, bramble, wild thyme, cedar and mulberry. Quite classic cabernet flavours drive the palate. Cassis, blackcurrant, dark chocolate, earth and a lifted leafy edge are all doing their thing. The tannins have plenty of purpose and drive and there's real brightness and zip on the finish. A very good example of Margaret River cabernet."
THE REAL REVIEW - Aaron Brasher
Heath Road - Chardonnay 2023
"Beautifully styled and inviting, the bouquet shows white flesh stone fruit, rockmelon, roasted cashew and subtle vanilla characters. The palate offers juicy fruit flavours with richly textured mouthfeel, well countered by bright acidity, finishing lingering and delectable. At its best: now to 2029."
WINE ORBIT - Sam Kim
"Captures many of the great qualities of this great Margaret River vintage. Lifted honey and peach nectar on the nose with a subtle toasty oak influence. The palate is still quite tight through the core yet there is tremendous power and fruit concentration. A slightly lemon zest edge to the finish keeps it on track to a sustained finish."
THE WINE PILOT - Ray Jordan
"A celebration of Margaret River chardonnay at a fair price and it rocks! Impressive quality on show here. Sunny, sea spray aromas – so inviting – mix with ripe yellow peach, nectarine, grapefruit zest and mango skin. Fermentation in barrel and 10 months maturation in French puncheons and barriques brings some scintillating textural interplay between an almond creaminess and edgy acidity to the wine. So bright it shines on the palate in lemon sorbet, citrus and white peach with a flash of fruit tingly lift to the finish. Alive and zesty to the hilt." Drink now - 2030.
THE WINE PILOT - Jeni Port
"Golden circle pineapple chunks. Jonathan apple and lemon verbena. Poached pears and chamomile tea. Cinnamon sugar, ground nutmeg and cumin. Mango skin and yellow peach. Churned cultured butter creaminess, a gentle breeze of elevated acidity. Oak tones are sophisticated and compliment the ripeness of tropical fruit. It feels relaxed rather than nervy but with good excited tension. Margaret’s power shines here and the wine is at a very smart price tag. Serve with pan seared whiting fillets."
THE WINE PILOT - Shanteh Wale
"A barrel-fermented Chardonnay which undergoes regular stirring, before maturation in a mix of both new and older French oak. Quite delicious – the latest releases from Jilyara are drinking as well as any wines I have seen from them. But then, if you can’t get Marg River Chardy right, perhaps the wine game is not for you. They got this one absolutely right, indeed. The colour here was a shining lemon hue. There was a flick of oak sitting alongside notes of stonefruits and herbs. A fine line of salinity runs the length. A supple texture, good density, ideal balance and a lingering and persistent finish. The palate sees the emergence of notes of lemon, hay and peaches. Should drink very well for the next three to six years."
THE WINE PILOT - Ken Gargett
Heath Road - Malbec 2023
A super year for malbec in Margaret River and this translates into an excellent example of the variety. It’s largely malbec but there are small contributions from cabernet and petit verdot adding colour and structure. Neatly integrated with bright red fruits dominant. Has all the raspberry and spicy chocolate characters you expect. Supported by a chalky tannin profile. Excellent wine.
WA WINE REVIEW 2025 - Ray Jordan
Heath Road - Cabernet Malbec 2022
"Sturdy and robust, yet with balance and harmony, the wine shows blackcurrant, raspberry, clove, almond and rich floral aromas on the nose. The palate is equally appealing with fruit richness backed by fleshy texture and chalky tannins, making it structured and persistent. At its best: now to 2034."
WINE ORBIT - Sam Kim
"This is such a good combination in Margaret River. There’s plenty happening here with a compelling aromatic combination red and blue fruits with a trace of spice. The palate is firmly held with fine tannins and subtle oak integration. Displays a fresh crunchy berry character that brings the palate to life."
THE WINE PILOT - Ray Jordan
"Cabernet Sauvignon dominant (87%) with Malbec (13%). A new addition to the portfolio showing the shoulders and sturdy reliable frame of cabernet with lift and high tones of malbec. The malbec sits atop the cabernet a bit like a toddler riding high on dad’s shoulders, the whole world at its feet. Here malbec shows in hibiscus florals, raspberry compote and wild rosehip and elevates the more brooding cabernet blackberry and subtle herbal shades. Picked thyme leaves and oregano followed by vanilla bean, cassia bark and cinnamon. It’s charms and disarms, it's cheeky in its zesty freshness with grainy tannins and a real succulence to the acidity. The wine spends 18 months in French barriques but you’d hardly know. Drink now and you’d be hard pressed to stop at a glass. Serve with popcorn chicken bites and a good movie, you’ll be too busy drinking to chit chat to anyone. Yum."
THE WINE PILOT- Shanteh Wale
Heath Road - Cabernet Sauvignon 2020
"This comes from the outstanding 2020 vintage. It was small but super concentrated with powerful fruit intensity. Brilliant light red and crimson colour shimmers in the glass. The nose is in that red fruit zone with a redcurrant and understated blackcurrant with a little glazed cherry. The palate is more in the medium bodied zone, but the power of the 2020 vintage impels through to a sustained finish. A wine that will handle plenty of cellaring time."
WA WINE REVIEW - Ray Jordan
"Jilyara of Wilyabrup sounds like an important person in indigenous history, like Bennelong of Gadigal, so drink it with due reverence and respect, giving thanks for keeping the land in such good nick from which such lovely stuff springs forth."
Max Crus - Wine Commentator
"Offering excellent varietal definition, the wine shows cassis, dried herb, anise and toasted nut aromas on the nose, followed by a finely textured palate displaying good weight and persistency. Well framed by fine, polished tannins, making it splendidly structured and flavoursome. At its best: now to 2032."
WINE ORBIT - Sam Kim
"The bullseye for cracking Cabernet in Margaret River is usually considered to be the sub-region of Wilyabrup, home to the grapes used here. After time on skins, the juice went into a combination of new and older French oak barriques for a period of maturation of a year and a half. The colour is deep maroon. There are notes of plums, blackcurrants, tobacco leaves, graphite and dry herbs. More licorice appears on the palate. Ripe flavours throughout this fine Marg River Cab. The structure is fine, focused and lengthy, but also quite plush. There was more generosity on the palate than the nose led one to expect. Now for the next eight years. A very fine example of Margaret River Cabernet and excellent value as well."
THE WINE PILOT - Ken Gargett
"How good is it to see a quality Cabernet Sauvignon with some age? With four years under its belt, Heath Road remains fresh and vital in lifted scents of black cherry and blackberry, vanilla, sage and thyme. There is a smidge of Merlot and Petit Verdot in the blend, which brings added interest and another layer when the wine hits the tongue in attractive florals, gentle spice and plush texture. Time in oak – 18 months maturation in French oak, 15% new – plays a big part in contributing an overall sense of elegance as well as structure. Flows easily. Pour a glass now and you won’t be disappointed. But, should you feel inclined to age further, it can be done." Drink now to 2030.
THE WINE PILOT - Jeni Port
Honeycomb Corner - Sauvignon Blanc 2024
"This is a classic savvy offering all the passionfruit and gooseberry fruitiness you want with this style. It’s crunchy and bright with refreshing acidity shaping a very long palate. A small amount of barrel fermentation has bright textural richness to the middle palate. Clean and crunchy with a refreshing finish. Cellar 3 years."
THE WINE PILOT - Ray Jordan
"Refreshingly, old-school sav blancs are coming out of the woodwork, or in this case, the hive. The sweet but savoury acidity and scents of cut grass and passionfruit are a delight to a palate wearied by a sea of bitter and dull pinot gris."
SATURDAY WINE COLUMN - Max Crus
Honeycomb Corner - Cabernet Rosé 2024
"Made from 61/39% cabernet sauvignon/merlot. It comes out as a coppery-pink blush. There’s a slight aroma of mint, red and blue berries, some florals, too. A slip of texture across the palate; it is simple but it is also juicy with fresh acidity, and dry enough to warrant another glass."
HALLIDAY WINE COMPANION - Jane Faulkner
Silver Medal - Endeavour Group Margaret River Wine Show 2024
Very light coral-pink hue; attractive spicy aromas with a hint of smoky reduction, the palate light and dry, crisp and appetising, with Bordeaux-style hints of cabernet/merlot, while the finish carries a nice dab of tannin that adds grip. Good food style rosé.
THE REAL REVIEW - Huon Hooke
"Strawberries, fairy floss, confit cherries, watermelon. Bracing acidity, delicate fruit and flower characters on the palate with a reserved length. A clean, refreshing and easy-drinking rose’ for springtime."
THE WINE PILOT - Lisa Cardelli
Honeycomb Corner - Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
"Beautifully fruited and inviting, the wine shows dark plum, cherry, thyme and toasted almond characters, followed by a medium-full-bodied palate offering fine texture backed by polished tannins. Harmonious and elegantly structured with a lingering sturdy finish. At its best: now to 2031."
WINE ORBIT - Sam Kim
"I have to say that this is a mighty impressive cabernet for this price. Bursts from the blocks with a hit of blackcurrant and a little coffee and cracked seashell complexity. The palate is medium bodied but with generous deep flavours. A mix of blackcurrant and regional bay leaf add further. It’s a classy defined and expressive cabernet. Cellar 8 years."
THE WINE PILOT - Ray Jordan
"You're tempted to find some honey flavours in this but alas not so much. However a current of deliciously fragrant blackcurrants is not a bad alternative. You can almost taste Margaret River in this, indeed that's exactly what you taste, I guess."
SATURDAY WINE COLUMN - Max Crus