Domaine Naturaliste
“The most brilliant examples of contemporary Margaret River chardonnay"
&
"…one of the best value chardonnays on the planet"
- Nick Ryan, Weekend Australia
Owner and chief Winemaker, Bruce Dukes,
hosts 10 wines including 3 new Releases over two events…
Sunday July 6
Hosted By Bruce Dukes, Owner & Chief Winemaker
Lunch: Noon, 10 Wines with 4 Course Menu, $140
Masterclass: 4-6pm, 10 Wines with Kate Lamont nibbles, $65
What the Critics have to say…
“Bruce Dukes is wholly talented, and while he makes high-quality acclaimed wines for his own estate – Domaine Naturaliste – he also does this for a raft of other, smaller producers in Margaret River and Geographe. His winemaking style is one of fresh, pure fruit over obvious or intrusive winemaking artifact, and the wines routinely possess a polish and eminent drinkability. Bruce holds both a degree in agronomy from the University of WA and a master's degree in viticulture and agronomy from the University of California (Davis) and has been in Margaret River since '00.”
ERIN LARKIN, Halliday Wine Companion
“Bruce Dukes is a winemaker built from the ground up. He sees the dirt in even the most polished glass. A soil microbiologist by training, Dukes realised agronomy in WA was a career that could fling you further than you wanted to go and vines were the kind of thing that grew in the places he'd rather be.…working with a handful of growers across the region, he's built into something special. He got there by a slightly different route to some, hitting milestones out of usual order, reverse-engineering a life in wine from deep in the dirt.”
NICK RYAN, The Weekend Australian 2025
Applying decades of international and local knowledge spanning terroir, fruit selection, palate and aroma, Domaine Naturaliste wines are always balanced and display a level of complexity and interest reserved for the best wines.
RAY JORDAN, Ray Jordan Wines
Meet the Owner and Chief Winemaker:
Bruce Dukes
Bruce draws on decades of local and international winemaking experience – including four years at Francis Ford Coppola’s Niebaum-Coppola winery in California and a significant tenure at Pierro Winery locally. His time spent in California helped Bruce hone his exacting and confident approach. His winemaking philosophy is best described by wine expert Professor Steven Kolpan who noted in his book ‘A Sense of Place’ that, “Bruce Dukes articulates the art and science of winemaking with elegance and ease. Bruce knows that the best wines are made vine by vine, berry by berry…”
The combination of his passion, artistic and intuitive flair make Bruce the gifted winemaker he is. Bruce’s passion for the region extends to his home life. Living at the base of Cape Naturaliste in the northern end of Margaret River with wife, Wendy, and sons, Oscar and Tim. (domainenaturaliste.com)
(May 2025)
Nick Ryan share his thoughts about Bruce's journey with wine
In last Saturday's Weekend Australian, Nick Ryan articulately described Bruce's winemaking philosphy and the story of Bruce's journey in wine. This lead to some fabulous reviews for three of our 2023 Chardonnays:
94pts 2023 Floris | 96 pts 2023 Artus | 96pts 2023 Purus
The Wine List & Menu TBC
1st Course
2025 Discovery Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (New Release)
Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon are captured to highlight their attractiveness in its youth. A complex layered and blended white. Sauvignon offering lifted fragrances of gooseberry and lychee, with Semillon offering fig, white grapefruit and a mineral component. The barrel fermentation introduces exotic spice and textural harmonization.
Winemaker Notes
2023 Sauvage Sauvignon Blanc
95 pts Gold Decanter World Wine Awards 2025
Awash with fresh pineapple, grapefruit and salted peach characters imbued with savoury nutty undercurrents. Superbly textured and meticulous with not a hair out of place.
Judges Comments
2nd Course
2024 Discovery Chardonnay (New Release)
A verve expression of our cool climate Chardonnay from the pristine south of Margaret River. Chardonnay is harvested at moderate ripeness to retain freshness and natural balance. The embodiment of spring, perfume, texture, delicacy and personality.
Winemaker Notes
2023 Floris Chardonnay
Gosh, Floris is charming this vintage. Pared back and refined, but charming nonetheless. A light showing of grapefruit and white nectarine, a flutter of ginger powder and gossamer-like creamy lees. Oak a mere backdrop. Moreish and savoury, and superb now, yet will last some distance.
95 points - Jane Faulkner, Halliday Wine Companion
2023 Artus Chardonnay
Plenty happening in this funky and wild expression of Chardonnay. On the nose, an intense combination of butterscotch, roasted cashew and lemon curd with vanilla bean lift revel. The palate is layered with a complete maze and intricate weave of flavours reflecting the initial aromas. And then a minerally finish completes a very good wine.
96 Points - Ray Jordan
2023 Purus Chardonnay
Feeling tired and sluggish? A glass of this pure, racy Purus will bring spark back into your life. It's more than the refreshing acidity, which is moreish and energising, there's a light film of citrus and white stone fruit, a little spice, a very fine layering of texture and oak. Super balance and length. Love it.
96 points - Jane Faulkner, Halliday Wine Companion
3rd Course
2023 Rebus Cabernet Sauvignon
All the fabulous varietal and regional aromas plus flavours are on full display thanks to an excellent vintage. A neat combo of violets, mulberries, blackcurrants and all manner of baking spices, especially cinnamon with mocha, licorice and coffee grinds. Full-bodied, ripe, sweet fruit floods the palate, so too lots of cedary oak, and yet the tannins are fine and the acidity equally fine. Good drinking today, even better with more time
95 points - Jane Faulkner, Halliday Wine Companion.
2021 Morus Cabernet Sauvignon (New Release)
Our finest cuvee of Cabernet Sauvignon from the heart of Margaret River. The gravelly soils of the vineyard are flanked by the dominant native hard wood trees named Jarrah. Jarrah trees have become a favourable and exact biological indicator that the site is ideally matched to Cabernet Sauvignon. Fruit expression from this site includes violets, cassis and mulberry. Indeed, mulberry is a very attractive fruit character which is a unique part of the terroir expression of Margaret River Cabernet and our local heritage clone. This cuvee is named to reflect this unique mulberry character; Morus australis being the genus and species name for the mulberry tree.
Winemaker Notes
4th Course
2021 Le Naturaliste Cabernet Franc
Wonderfully complex and perfumed with aromas of wild blueberries, violets, dark chocolate and damson plums. The full-bodied palate has finely integrated tannins and balanced acidity, giving notes of dark cherries, chalk, cured meats, graphite and dried herbs. Very lush and structured with a floral edge. Drink or hold.
95 Points - James Suckling
2018 Le Naturaliste Cabernet Franc
A remarkable ground-breaking statement of cabernet franc in Australia. There is a sports-car power and elegant style. Perfumed violets and cherries with even a little juniper berry lift. It is fragrant beyond expectations with a depth and intensity built with structure, fine, chalky tannins and filled with black cherry and plum.
98 Points, Ray Jordan