Random Valley organic winery

Recently Dave and I took a trip out to one of our favourite wineries – Random Valley. Not only do they make delicious organic wines, they’ve also got a unique premises and vineyard that demonstrate their commitment to sustainability. We had a nice chat with the owners, Peter and Suzanne Little, about their setup.

Their cellar-door building is made of recycled materials, with several walls insulated using old wine bottles filled with water. They monitor the indoor temperatures and record them, with the information being sent to a research program with Curtin University and SEDO (WA’s Sustainable Energy Development Office). The building stays cool in summer and warm in winter, solely by clever design and construction. You can read a little more about bottle insulation at Treehugger. It’s the kind of thing that you could try for yourself, maybe giving it a test-run by building a shed or studio this way.

The Littles also use lots of reused materials in their vineyards – aluminum cans, milk cartons and newspapers all get a second life, as do fallen trees, plastic pipe offcuts and old fence posts.

What else do they do? Plenty!

• Their water run-off is put through nutrient ponds and reed beds to clean it up before it leaves the property.
• They’re starting an organic herd of cows
• Plenty of land is left in it’s natural state so that it’s a habitat for wildlife, and they’re hoping to create a corridor to the Blackwood River, if neighbouring properties do the same

It’s really inspiring to see people putting their sustainable ideas to the test, and living according to their principles. It encourages me to continue with the changes I’m making to my life. If you’re ever in the Margaret River region, I really recommend that you pop out to Karriedale and see what can be done to make a sustainable business. Oh, and try the award-winning wine too, it’s great!