By Fergal Gleeson

Cullen Wines

All of Cullens Wines are vegan and that sits comfortably with the winemaking ethos which involves handling the fruit as little and as gently as possible.

They use many of the same practices as Woodlands such as hand harvesting, very little fruit transport, sorting of the fruit before crushing, minimal fining for the Whites, no fining for the Reds, and minimal filtration are used. This helps to ensure that the wine in the bottle is a true expression of the fruit that it is made from.

I asked Vanya Cullen, Winemaker and Proprietor of Cullen Wines why they make vegan wines? “It’s because we don’t add anything to our wine,” she says. “It comes naturally!”

“We go to lots of effort with all our wines to make the best sustainably,” she says. “Because pure is best. We would like to think that in both the vineyard and winery we are working with nature rather than trying to control it.”

More at www.cullens.wines.com.au

Aravina Estate

Winemaker Ryan Aggiss tells me about the reasons Aravina released a vegan wine, their 2018 Limited Release Tempranillo.

“The concept behind creating a vegan friendly wine was primarily driven by the owners, Steve and Hayley Tobin and our team of chefs,” Ryan tells me. “They create amazing vegan food offerings but up until now haven’t been able to match them to our wines due to the fact we use organic fining agents in the completion of our wines.”

“At Aravina we strive to constantly ensure our visitors’ needs across all demographics are captured and satisfied,” he says. “When looking for a wine that could be suitably nurtured into the bottle with no finings and no animal derived processing aids (milk and eggs) I put forward our multi clonal, barrel matured Tempranillo,” he says.

“The long maturation has resulted in a wine of softness and generosity and was a perfect fit for what our team needed. I find it refreshing that Steve and Hayley are constantly pushing Aravina into offerings across all of our customers’ food requirements.”

I can confirm the 2018 Tempranillo is delicious with ripe fruit flavours of black cherries and violet. Ryan has made a softer Tempranillo where the characteristic drying tannins are tamed and will integrate further with some time in the cellar.

Find below a list of Western Australian Wineries making vegan wines courtesy of veganwinesaustralia.com.au : 

• Amelia Park(All wines are vegan.)
• Ashbrook Estate(All wines are vegan.)
• Churchview Estate(The Churchview Estate, St Johns and Bartondale ranges are suitable for vegans. If you let them know that you’re vegan when you visit, they can guide you through the wines.)
• Cullen Wines(All wines are vegan. Biodynamic and they can make a vegan meal for lunch.)
• Fraser Gallop Estate(All wines excluding the Estate SSB and the Estate Chardonnay are vegan.)
• Juniper Estate(2012 Juniper Crossing Shiraz, 2010 Juniper Estate Shiraz, 2010 Juniper Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, 2010 Higher Plane Cabernet Sauvignon.)
• Lamont’s Smith Beach(All reds are vegan, and they have a preservative-free vegan chardonnay.)
• Settlers Ridge Organic Wines(They are informed about isinglass and want to promote the fact that their wines are organic, mostly vegan. All their whites are vegan but please be aware that they often use egg whites in their reds.)
• Sandalford Estate(Most wines are vegan, or contact Sandalford for a list.)
• Woodlands(All wines are vegan.)
• Xanadu (All wines are vegan unless a non-vegan fining agent is declared on the label.)

From Your Margaret River Region Magazine