Wine doyen heaps praise on region

Australia's leading wine authority was in the Great Southern last week to celebrate 50 years of wine production in the region.

James Halliday first visited the Great Southern in 1979 and has championed its producers and their top drops ever since.

Mr Halliday attended the Qantas Wine Show of WA exhibitors tasting at Plantagenet Wines on Friday and visited Alkoomi, Castle Rock, Duke's Vineyard, Forest Hill, Frankland Estate, Poacher's Ridge and West Cape Howe over the weekend.

He also spoke about the past, present and future of the region's viticulture industry at a wine tasting and dinner at Gilberts Wines in Mt Barker on Saturday to mark 50 years of wine production.

Mr Halliday described the atmosphere among pioneers, winemakers and producers as "collaborative and energetic".

"I love riesling and have no doubt there are more great rieslings in the Great Southern than those of any other region," Mr Halliday said.

"The region has consistently demonstrated its ability to produce riesling, shiraz and cabernet sauvignon of the highest quality, equal to or better than those varieties and wines produced by other regions.

"This is not to say that the story ends here: truly excellent chardonnay is also made, along with other white and red varieties."

Mr Halliday said some of the region's strengths were its diverse topography and natural landscapes, lack of pollution and it being in the same time zone as Beijing - with China being the most important export market for high-quality Australian wines.

He said challenges included the Great Southern's distance from Perth and between the region's five subregions, and the uncertainty and infrequency of air services.