Wayfinder Wines has debuted its new sustainability-focused cellar door, winery and restaurant in Cowaramup, Margaret River.
The cellar door is already open to the public, with the Dining Room led by Executive Chef Brendan Pratt (ex-Vasse Felix, Parker Group) open on September 16. Casual outdoor dining area The Lawn will follow on September 25, with bookable market garden tours and winery experiences to start from October.
The Dining Room will offer a five-course set menu as well as a la carte. The menus will evolve with the seasons in line with the venue’s one-acre Market Garden which implements regenerative and organic farming processes to grow produce including heirloom vegetables, edible flowers, herbs, and in the future, orchard fruit.
“We’re building dishes around the wines by deciding which characteristics to highlight and exploring how texture, acidity, sweetness, and umami express those qualities,” Pratt said.
“We’re also ensuring the menu evolves with the garden and winery to reflect our philosophy of thoughtful farming, minimal waste, and genuine seasonality.”
Debut dishes are set to include scallop with smoked eel, celery and tosazu plus a kangaroo with cavalo nero, macadamia and salt bush.
“The menu for me is thoughtful, seasonal and ever evolving,” Pratt said. “It’s a menu that reflects both the diversity of Australia’s culinary landscape and the unique character of our farm.
“We take inspiration from all around the world, drawing on techniques, flavours and ideas from the many cultures that have shaped Australia’s food landscape. Rather than being bound by a single cuisine, we allow the garden and the wines to guide us, choosing the ingredients, techniques and flavour combinations that best express what nature has given us at that particular moment.”
Pratt and his team will also be working with local suppliers such as Cambray Cheese in Nannup and The Farm House in Margaret River. In the future, the menu will also feature regeneratively farmed lamb raised on the Wayfinder property.
The Lawn area will be where guests can order light snacks and dishes with bean bags, blankets and stunning views of the Market Garden. Highlights from the menu include pickled and salted anchovy toast along with a Wayfinder Garden Plate featuring soft cheese and salumi plus vegetables picked straight from the Market Garden.
For the drinks offering, the Wayfinder portfolio is on pour across the venue, alongside sparkling wine from its Tasmanian sister winery Small Wonder Wines and local beers and soft drinks.
From October, guests will also be able to book in for a range of winery experiences led by Wayfinder Head Winemaker Andrew Trio. Tours feature a behind-the-scenes look at the gravity-fed winery, followed by a seated tasting in ‘The Blending Room’ and a five-course meal paired with the Wayfinder Wines range.
“Our winery is designed to work with the landscape by being built directly into a turkey-nest dam,” said Trio.
“This provides natural temperature control and assists with our gravity-fed winemaking process which conserves energy to align with our sustainability focus at the winery.
“It’ll be great to take guests into the winery to show how this process works and influences the final product they get to enjoy at the end of the tour.”
Also launching from October will be a dedicated Market Garden tour led by Head Market Gardener Amy Dyson and Market Gardener Bec Davie.
“Our Market Garden tours will give guests the chance to get up close and personal with the one-acre site that is truly the heart of the Wayfinder Winery & Farm experience,” said Dyson.
“They’ll get to see the regenerative and sustainable farming practices up-close and see first-hand how we manage almost everything from seed to the final product on the plate.”
Designed by Kerry Hill Architects’ Fremantle studio, Wayfinder Winery & Farm draws inspiration from its natural surroundings. It continues the winery’s commitment to sustainability through a partially subterranean design utilising natural thermal regulation and a comprehensive solar array allowing the site to operate entirely off-grid.