History
John Septimus Roe becomes Western Australia's first
Surveyor General
John Septimus Roe become Western Australia's first Surveyor General after an illustrious career in the British Navy. An accomplished explorer and mathematician, he worked in the New South Wales colony from 1817 to 1827 before accepting the West Australian role in 1829.
John Septimus Roe, WA’s first Surveyor General, bequeathed 4,000 acres at Caversham
Queen Victoria granted Roe land on the riverbanks at West Swan in honour of his 57 years of service to the Commonwealth. He named the property Sandalford after a priory in Berkshire, U.K. - his original home. Roe and his wife Matilda had 13 children who grew up on the Estate.
First harvest on Sandalford Estate – table grapes; muscats, malagas, frontignacs, chasselas and more
John Septimus had experimented with all the varieties that found their way to the new colony – many from South Africa – and the most suited to the estate’s terroir thrived.
Upon J S Roe’s death Sandalford passes to the eldest of his 13 children, James Broun Roe
Following the passing of J B Roe, Sandalford was bequeathed to his son John Frederick Roe, who took a keen interest in the fertile lands of the estate.
James Frederick Roe, grandson of John Septimus, inherits Sandalford Estate and boosts agrarian production
Sandalford was the Swan Valley’s pioneering estate with cropping, cattle grazing, vegetables and extensive vineyards and fruit orchards. The property hummed to seasonal rhythms – Summer stone fruit picking was followed by harvesting grapes until late Autumn when the currants, sultanas and raisins were dried on wire netting racks and the yearly task of seducing the soil into producing the next crop began all over.
Successful exports of Ohanez, a thick-skinned Spanish grape, begin
The thick-skinned Spanish grapes proved highly suitable for export, and were harvested by hand in what an observer described as ‘a pursuit of excellence where bunches were handled in such a way as to not disturb the grape’s natural bloom’.
Diversification aids Sandalford Estate to survive the Great Depression
Sandalford’s export grapes were the ‘aristocrats of the vineyard.’ J F Roe was the first of the Swan Valley vignerons to engage overseas markets and pioneered the use of cork dust as a means of preserving grapes during the long sea transits
Post WWII European immigrants bring new wine techniques to Sandalford, boosting production
Commercial winemaking accelerated during the 1940s after World War II. Migrants – particularly Croatians and Italians – had begun to arrive in the Swan Valley after the first war, and the second wave was particularly auspicious for the wine industry as the immigrants brought new knowledge and techniques.
Roe family buys and plants 300 hectare vineyard at Wilyabrup, Margaret River
This area had earlier been assessed by University of WA viticultural scientist Dr John Gladstones as being an ideal climate and terrior for growing premium wine grapes, with its general conditions likened to the famed region of Bordeaux in France. Based on this, the Roes family purchased a property at Wilyabrup, planted vines in 1970, and joined a handful of others in pioneering Western Australia’s second classic wine region – a destination now recognised on the world stage for amazing Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay with a developing reputation for Shiraz.
Prendiville family purchases Sandalford Wines
WA’s Prendiville family was already immersed in tourism and hospitality when they identified Sandalford Wines as a perfect fit for their growing portfolio of iconic businesses. In 1991, the Prendivilles successfully acquired Sandalford and devised a plan to revitalise the 160 year old Western Australian brand.
Sandalford Restaurant established at Caversham
After spending $6 million dollars redeveloping the company’s facilities, their vision of a business that not only produces wines of distinction but also has the perfect synergy of wine and tourism has come to fruition. Sandalford Restaurant consistently wins accolades in tourism and hospitality awards.
National Wine Awards Best Red Sandalford Margaret River 2008 Vintage Shiraz
The trophy cabinets at Sandalford Wines hold many awards, however the 2008 Shiraz taking out Wine of the Year was a particularly triumphant achievement for the winemakers and viticulturalists at Sandalford Estate
China Ready & Accredited®
CHINA READY® is a global accreditation system that identifies quality assurance, cultural awareness, consumer protection and respect for Chinese travellers. Today, we are proud to welcome over 30,000 Chinese-speaking customers every year to Sandalford Wines.
Sandalford’s largest ever concert – Neil Diamond performs for 16,000 guests
We have been proud to present some awesome acts at Sandalford Estate, and after a considerable expansion of our facilities, we presented a sold out Neil Diamond concert on a perfect evening to more than 16,000 in our stunning outdoor amphitheatre
Sandalford awarded Best National Wedding Caterer and hosts visit by King & Queen of the Netherlands
Since 2002, Sandalford Wines has received 59 major state and national awards. Our achievements in presenting perfect weddings was recognised in the National Restaurant & Catering Awards for Excellence. To match this accolade, we were delighted to be chosen as the host venue for a visit by Royalty and over 300 Dutch Nationals resident in WA invited by the Royal Household
Sandalford wins Gold at the Australian Tourism Awards held in Perth
After being a state finalist ten times and a runner-up the two previous years, Sandalford Wines was recognised as Australia’s best tourism winery at Australian Tourism Awards winning the Tourism Restaurants, Wineries & Breweries category.
