In the early 1900’s, cattle on the coastal plains near Busselton were allowed to roam free in the higher forest country in search of feed during the summer months when the local pastures had dried up. They were constantly found to favour the sweet grasses of the granite country of the escarpment inland the Blackwood River, and so it was that this region that was one of the first to be favoured for agricultural development by the early 20th century settlers.

As homage to these early settlers the original dirt floor cottage still stands on the property and has been lovingly restored by the Fitzgerald family as a reminder of the property’s history. The property was still owned by one of the descendants of the original settling families when it was secured by Ray and Barry Fitzgerald in 1998 who intended to establish a production vineyard to supply premium grapes to the Houghton Wine Company, one of the oldest and then largest wine producers in Western Australia.

In 2008, changes within the Houghton Wine Company meant they were no longer buying grapes from smaller buyers such as Nannup Ridge Estate, and as such this became a time of major change for Nannup Ridge Estate. It was then that we engaged a master winemaker to produce our wines and started showing them at numerous local and national wine shows.

This initiative met with immediate success with four gold, 10 minor medals and two trophies awarded in the first year. Such success assisted in securing new supply contracts with other major Western Australian wineries who now take 70% of our harvest, with the balance continuing to be processed as premium wine under our Nannup Ridge label.