First planted in 1971, Alkoomi has grown in stages through to 2023. Merv and Judy Lange started the vineyard with one hectare in ’71 on a 1,200 hectare sheep station bought in 1946, the property itself named Alkoomi after a Noongar word meaning “a place we chose”. Shiraz, riesling, cabernet sauvignon and malbec are the oldest, still producing top-tier fruit. “The oldest blocks, 51, consistently produced the best fruit with the only exception a few years of frost. We believe it’s due to depth of roots providing a consistent supply of moisture and nutrients,” says Penniment. “The yields on shiraz and riesling are still consistently around seven tonnes per hectare which is perfect for us. Malbec and cabernet sit around 3.5 to four tonnes per hectare, but produce the best expressions of these varieties on the farm.” Chardonnay, albariño, cabernet franc and viognier are part of a long list of 17 varieties now in the ground. All vines are grown on their own roots, except for small sections of gewürztraminer grafted onto semillon, and grenache grafted onto sauvignon blanc.
Sustainability runs deep here. “100% of the vineyard is irrigated using dripline. All of the water supplied is harvested using surface drains and catchment,” says Penniment, who uses soil monitors to ensure that irrigation is targeted and precise. “All of the winery marc and lees is turned to compost onsite and used for fertiliser.” Cover crops like rye, clover, and vetch lock in summer rain. Sheep graze post-harvest to nix weeds, cutting tractor passes and boosting soil health, while buffer zones near waterways help revive the local koonac population (a freshwater crustacean similar to yabbies or marron). Organic carbon levels are monitored with testing every two years. “There has been a consistent increase of 0.5 to 1% per year since 2017,” Penniment notes. “There has been a noticeable decrease in the water required per hectare as a result.” The dryness of the region might necessitate irrigation, but it has eco-friendly upsides. “The vineyard only requires spraying every 14 to 20 days,” Penniment notes. He no longer sprays copper or botryticides.
The land itself is a character. “The vineyard is situated at 250m above sea level and in a rain shadow that stops at the karri forests near Manjimup and starts again at the Stirling ranges,” Penniment says. The site catches massive diurnal swings – 20°C-plus drops that cool summer nights right down to a brisk 12°C. “That range is gold,” Penniment explains. “Late reds ripen slow and steady, while chardonnay and riesling keep their zip.” For Penniment, that slow ripening is typical of the region. “Frankland River fruit as a general rule shows great vibrancy of acidity whilst gaining significant and consistent ripeness,” he says. The soils here shift every 10 metres or so – gravelly loams here, sandy patches there – prompting a complex mosaic of varying row orientations. Leaf-plucking opens morning canopies, while afternoon shade protects fruit from the peak heat. It’s a dance with Frankland River’s elements, and Alkoomi’s got the moves.
As beautiful as the region is, its sheer remoteness poses logistical challenges for Alkoomi. There are no major towns within striking distance, so vineyard staff have to live in housing on the property. An unexpected upside to this cheek-by-jowl arrangement is that sprays and other vineyard interventions are assessed not only for their ecological impact but also for their safety for workers and visitors. “We have aimed to make the spray program as gentle and safe as possible, as at any one time we may have 15 or more people living on the farm,” Penniment says. “Creating a safe environment has always been important to us.”
The care and dedication shown to the farm and its workers shows in the glass. The Jarrah Shiraz, always from the original ’71 block, is Alkoomi’s calling card – medium-bodied, silky tannins, and a mid-palate that bursts with dark fruit and spice. “It’s the best snapshot of the vineyard since day one,” Penniment observes. Across the board, from the Family Collection (riesling, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay) to Trait Wines grenache and Three Elms gewürztraminer, the fruit sings with Frankland’s trademark vibrancy – bright acidity meets ripe, juicy depth. “We get medium-bodied wines with soft tannins and killer intensity,” Penniment says. “Shiraz and riesling thrive, but cabernet sauvignon and sauvignon blanc love the long season too.”
Key to achieving Alkoomi’s impressive results in glass is a parcellaire approach, with the vineyard split into a diverse mosaic of smaller blocks, harvested separately and kept separate in the winery as long as possible to maximise blending options. “There’s almost no consistency in the soil profile we find,” Penniment says. “In any row it’s likely to change every 10 metres. This has led to us planting as many separate blocks of each variety as we can.” The benefit for Penniment is “the chance to chase exactly what we like to see in a grape.” Penniment’s philosophy here is all about options. “We treat every block the same – same love, same chance,” he says. “You never know which’ll shine in a vintage, but the ’71 blocks have a knack for the exceptional. Their aging potential’s unmatched.” Trials with the winemaking team back this up – “There has been some slight shifts where some extra ripeness has been embraced on the whites, trusting the acid line to maintain structure, whilst the reds are shifting to picking slightly earlier and reining in the ripeness to maintain their varietal characters.”
Climate’s a beast, though. Frost and water are the big risks, countered with higher cordons and soil moisture probes. “Hot and cold vintages swing hard now,” Penniment notes. “A mix of orientations saves us – shiraz on south slopes holds moisture better.” Next up? Maybe frost fans for those old blocks. But what he loves most is the slow-burn evolution: “Small tanks, small blocks, 20-year-old gear … it’s organic, unplanned, real.”
Alkoomi earns its stripes by pushing boundaries while honouring the dirt. From the giant fig tree shading the homestead – 60 years old and 30 meters wide, always showing its best fruit just as the old block Malbec starts to become perfectly ripe – to the wines hitting tables far and wide, this is provenance with heart. “The variation across our blocks lets us blend for something fuller,” Penniment says. “That’s our edge.” It’s why Alkoomi’s fruit keeps turning heads, vintage after vintage, and why it stands tall among Australia’s boldest vineyards.
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