Fremantle Arts Centre Press has produced a sumptuously photographed and generously laid out book called ‘Margaret River’ ($59.95). The book’s hero is quite clearly and deliberately the photography of the gifted Frances Andrijich, which takes the reader on a cultural, historic and contemporary tour of this most picturesque of Australian wine regions. Perth scribes Peter Forrestal and Ray Jordan provide a light and breezy editorial on aspects such as landscape, flora and fauna, sea, architecture and people, plus a rather all-too-brief summary of the region’s wine and coverage of six of its most important vineyard sites. Clearly, the subject matter has largely been chosen to show off Andrijich’s impressive if slightly staged and clinical style at the other end of the lens, but that isn’t entirely a bad thing. While this largely illustrative book does not set out to be the last word on Margaret River’s wine, it might indeed have used a little more depth of wine content. Without wine, after all, Margaret River would still probably be exclusively populated by graziers, surfies, artists and hippies – not that there’s necessarily much wrong with that.
