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Margaret River 101

5 out of 5 starsTrusted by 20,000+ students

Discover Margaret River wines

Geographic isolation, ancient soils, and heritage Cabernet and Chardonnay clones. The story behind Western Australia's most distinctive wine region.

  • 6 chapters
  • 6 videos
  • 2h
  • certificate
$99.99
lifetime access · usd

30-day money-back guarantee

Margaret River 101 course mark

Introduction

The beginner's guide to Margaret River

Three sides of ocean, ancient soils, and heritage Cab and Chardonnay clones. Margaret River makes some of the most consistent fine wine in the New World. We'll walk you through the sub-regions, the grapes, and what makes the place tick.

Curriculum

What you'll learn

  1. Chapter 1

    What makes Margaret River unique

    Geographical isolation, pristine oceans, ancient soils, and heritage clones, the foundations of Margaret River's quality.

  2. Chapter 2

    The sub-regions

    Wilyabrup, Wallcliffe, and the broader Margaret River appellations.

  3. Chapter 3

    Cabernet and Chardonnay

    Margaret River's flagship grapes, and why they're considered some of the world's best.

  4. Chapter 4

    Tasting like a pro

    Identify quality and regional character in Margaret River wines.

  5. Chapter 5

    Buying Margaret River

    How to read an Australian wine label, pick the right vintage, and find value across Margaret River's price spread.

  6. Chapter 6

    Beyond the flagships

    Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc blends, Shiraz, and the wines that round out Margaret River's identity.

Inside the course

More than Cab and Chardonnay

The basics

What makes Margaret River unique

Geographic isolation, ancient soils, oceans on three sides, and heritage grapevine clones add up to wines that taste like nowhere else. We'll unpack how Margaret River became one of the world's most consistent Chardonnay and Cabernet regions, and the laid-back, quality-first ethos behind it.

Goals

Taste like a pro, with a pro

Understand how geological, geographical, historical, and climatic factors influence what you can see, smell, and taste in your next Margaret River wine. Come out of the course knowing what sets Margaret River Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon apart from the rest of Australia, and the world.

Companion

Margaret River Wine Region Guide

Margaret River 101 pairs with the Margaret River Wine Region Guide, the online knowledge base for the region's producers, sub-AVAs, and signature wines. Use the course to build the framework; use the guide for lookups and deeper exploration.

Visit the region guide

Course wines

Wines we'll taste together

Wines aren't included with the course, but tasting along is encouraged. Here's the lineup we'll explore.

Every region, grape, and map at your fingertips. keep studying with Wine Folly+ →

Free preview

Try a lesson on us

Drop your email and we'll send a free chapter from Margaret River 101.

Your wine guides

Taught by world-class wine educators

Margaret River's quality rewards careful study. You'll learn from a James Beard award-winning author of the bestselling Wine Folly book and one of the world's most credentialed wine educators. Over 20,000 students taught.
Christine Marsiglio

Christine Marsiglio

Director of Education

Christine leads the tasting modules through Margaret River's flagship Cabernet, Chardonnay, and Semillon-Sauvignon Blanc blends.

Director of Education and one of only 35 Bollinger award-winning Masters of Wine worldwide.

Read full bio
Christine is our Director of Education and one of only 35 Bollinger award-winning Masters of Wine worldwide.

Before Wine Folly, she taught the WSET Diploma in London and contributed to the latest global Diploma materials. She also led tastings at Decanter, running panels and organizing the Decanter World Wine Awards.

She's the rare expert who can teach at the Master of Wine level and still meet a beginner where they are.
Madeline Puckette

Madeline Puckette

Wine Folly Founder

Madeline frames the regional story, how isolation, ancient soils, and heritage clones produced one of Australia's most-respected wine regions.

Wine Folly co-founder, James Beard Award winner, and New York Times bestselling author.

Read full bio
Madeline co-founded Wine Folly in 2011 and turned it into the world's go-to wine cheat sheet.

She's a James Beard Award winner, a New York Times bestselling author, and was named both Wine Blogger of the Year and Wine Communicator of the Year by the International Wine & Spirits Competition.

Her articles, infographics, and videos are what made wine knowledge feel approachable to a generation of drinkers.

student reviews

What students are saying

“This was an exceptionally good course. I was studying my 101 and 102 wines at the time of doing this online and independently of Melbourne Wine School. I was in the region and wanted to fast track my learnings. It was really good to be able to travel around Margaret river and the region knowing about the history of the area, the main grape varieties, the moderating influences and the unique flavours and winemaking techniques, which are seen to be quite unique around the world. Who would have known that Margaret River was so famous on the world stage? Find out why is all I can say. 10/10”

Lynne w.

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Ready to start?

Margaret River 101

$99.99
one-time · usd · yours forever
5 out of 5 stars
  • 6 chapters of regional deep dive
  • 60+ minutes of expert video
  • Direct links to the Margaret River Region Guide
  • Lifetime access, yours forever
  • Margaret River 101 certificate ($50 value)
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30-day money-back guarantee

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Next step

Ready to go deeper?

Wine 201 takes you from confident regional drinker to certified wine professional, taught by the same Wine Folly instructors.

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