THE HIDDEN RIVER ESTATE JOURNAL
A Winter to Remember, and a New Season Ahead
SPRING 2026 · ISSUE ONE
From Ardal's Kitchen
Winter was a big one for us. There was plenty happening, but some of my favourite moments were actually the quiet ones — standing around the fire, opening another bottle and listening to people who'd arrived as strangers talking like old friends.
Our Truffle Experiences gave us some wonderful moments. There were wet boots and roaring fires, truffles coming out of the ground, long lunches that became long afternoons and four birthdays celebrated around the table.
But what I remember most is the people. Old friends reconnecting. New friendships beginning. The kitchen working flat out behind the scenes. The dogs getting considerably more attention than the rest of us.
Now spring has arrived and Hidden River Estate is changing again.
There's new produce coming into the kitchen, the vineyard is moving into another season, our first Pinot Noir is finally in bottle and we've stopped talking about starting a Wine Club and actually started one.
So there's plenty to share.
This is the first issue of The Hidden River Estate Journal. Four times a year, we'll share a little more of what is happening here — in the vineyard, kitchen, cellar, forest and around our tables.
I hope you enjoy it.
Ardal
Around the Estate
A Season to Remember
Winter 2026 gave us two days we're unlikely to forget in a hurry.
For the first time, our Truffle Experiences centred around the new gazebo overlooking the truffle grove and karri forest — a place created for exactly this sort of gathering.
The weather decided to put it to the test immediately.
At our first experience, rain swept through the valley while Ardal, in his Dryzabone and gumboots, kept the fires going.
“In the end the weather probably made the day. Everyone gathered around the fires, nobody was in a rush and when the rain finally lifted, heading into the grove felt even more special.”
Across our two experiences, there were truffles unearthed, five courses served, wines poured and four birthdays celebrated.
But there were other things happening too.
Old friends reconnected. New friendships started around the table. People lingered around the fire. And before the season had even finished, guests were already talking about coming back.
Deb Miles summed it up better than we could:
"It was perfect. The truffle experience was incredible, the food was incredible, the wines and pairings were incredible. It was just a magic day. If you decide to host another truffle experience, I will be there!”— July 2026 guest
Moments from the Grove
Truffle season at Hidden River Estate · Winter 2026
Come Back to the Grove in 2027
The good news is Deb — and everyone else — doesn't have to wait for us to decide.
Our 2027 Indulgent Truffle Experiences are already live:
Saturday 26 June 2027
Saturday 24 July 2027
If you've been thinking about joining us in the grove, bookings are now open.
Around our Table
The People Behind the Season
Guests see what happens on the day. What they don't always see is everything — and everyone — behind it.
It takes a team
Head Chef Yohan Wyld created the menu for our Truffle Experiences before welcoming his third son just ahead of the first event.
It meant Sous Chef Cleo and the team were handed the job of bringing Yohan’s five-course menu to the table without him.
And they weren’t exactly starting fresh. They had already worked their way through a busy restaurant lunch service before resetting the kitchen and doing it all again for the Truffle Experience.
What happened at the end of the meal probably says more about the team than we can.
“I was incredibly proud of them. At the end of the meal, the guests gave the team a standing ovation. People were genuinely in awe of what such a small team had achieved, and of how special they had made the experience for them.”— Ardal
That’s the part of hospitality guests aren’t usually meant to see — the work behind what arrives at the table. But on this occasion, they noticed. And they made sure the team knew it.
The team behind our first Truffle 2026 Experience — and a standing ovation from the room.
The Dogs Behind the Discovery
Of course, there were several members of the team who had absolutely no difficulty stealing the show.
Alyssa Cowgill of The Natural Dog joined us with Macca, Calypso and Mabel, taking guests through the grove and demonstrating just how skilled a good truffle dog can be.
“The dogs were probably the stars of the day. I'm comfortable with that. Mostly. 🙂” — Ardal
Capturing the Magic
We were also fortunate to have Gemma from Southern Forest Creative there to capture the season.
Not just the plates and the big moments, but muddy boots, fires, laughter, dogs, conversations around the table and the little things that are easy to miss when you're busy making the day happen.
“I'm usually looking at what's happening next, so I don't always see the day the way our guests do. Gemma catches those moments. Looking back through the photographs afterwards is quite special.” — Ardal
Meet the Makers
From Vineyard to First Pinot
There’s something particularly satisfying about reaching a first.
This year, that first is Pinot Noir — the first made from Pinot grown here at Hidden River Estate.
It’s a wine Ardal has been looking forward to seeing come together, not simply because it adds another wine to the cellar, but because it marks another step in the story of the vineyard.
Pinot vines at Hidden River Estate, Pemberton.
For the winemaking, Ardal turned to someone whose wines have already had a place at Hidden River Estate for some time — Dan Pannell of Picardy.
Ardal has long poured and sold Picardy wines through the restaurant and cellar door, so working with Dan to make Hidden River Estate’s first Pinot Noir was a natural extension of an existing relationship.
Dan is the winemaker behind our 2025 Hidden River Estate Pinot Noir, taking fruit grown here at the estate and guiding it through its first vintage.
For Ardal, there’s something rather nice about that progression — from putting Dan’s wines on the table for our guests, to having him make a wine from our own vineyard.
“There’s something quite satisfying about finally opening a bottle that started with vines you’ve been watching for years. There’s also a slight temptation to keep it all for ourselves, but apparently that’s not a viable business model.” — Ardal
The result is a Pinot with brig
ht fruit intensity, refined structure and a delicate, balanced character — and one we’re very pleased to finally be able to share.
Our 2025 Pinot Noir is currently available as a Limited Pre-Release, with more of its story — and the wine itself — appearing in the cellar below.
From the Vineyard & Cellar
A Hidden River Estate First
2025 PINOT NOIR · LIMITED PRE-RELEASE
Our first Hidden River Estate-grown Pinot Noir has arrived.
The 2025 Pinot shows bright fruit intensity, refined structure and delicate flavour, with balance and the potential to develop further with age.
For us, though, its significance goes beyond tasting notes. This is a genuine first -- Pinot Noir grown here at Hidden River Estate, now finally in the bottle.— Pinot Noir grown here at Hidden River Estate, now finally in the bottle.
And sometimes that's enough of a reason to open one.
INTRODUCING ARDAL'S SELECTION
The Hidden River Estate Wine Club
Six bottles. Hand selected by Ardal. Delivered every season.
We've talked about a Wine Club for a while. But the idea was never simply to send people six bottles every three months and call it a club.
“The idea isn't to send people six bottles and call it a Wine Club. I want members to feel a little closer to what we're doing here — what we're drinking, what's happening in the cellar and what I'm putting on the table that season.” — Ardal
Four times a year, Ardal chooses one six-bottle selection for the season.
Members can join at any time and receive the current seasonal selection, followed by a new selection every three months.
Six bottles · $200 per quarter + shipping
Members will also receive first access to selected releases, experiences and other things happening around the estate.
Ardal's First Spring Selection
1 × Blanc de Blanc Méthode Traditionnelle
2 × Unwooded Chardonnay 2023
3 × Rosé 2025
And there is a reason for the one, two and three.
“I chose this first box by thinking about how I'd actually drink the wines. Start with the Blanc de Blanc. Put the Unwooded Chardonnay on the table with lunch. Then, as spring gets warmer and afternoons get longer, you'll want the Rosé cold and close at hand. That's why there's one, two and three. It's not terribly scientific, but it makes sense to me.” — Ardal
One Blanc de Blanc
Because this is where Ardal would start. Our Blanc de Blanc is made in the traditional French style from hand-picked, whole-bunch Chardonnay and has spent 10 years on lees. Citrus and apple lead into fine bubbles and a creamy texture, with a clean, dry finish. It's a bottle for opening as people arrive, beginning a long lunch or simply deciding that the day deserves bubbles.
Two Unwooded Chardonnays
Spring food calls for something fresh enough for warmer days but with enough texture to hold its own at the table. Our 2023 Unwooded Chardonnay brings pear, melon and apple with subtle gooseberry, citrus and rock melon. It's crisp and textured with a refreshing finish. That's why there are two — one rarely has difficulty finding its way onto the table.
Three Rosés
As spring moves towards summer, this is the bottle Ardal expects people will reach for most. Our 2025 Rosé, made from Shiraz, brings strawberry, raspberry and floral aromas, with Pink Lady apple, red berries and cherry on the palate. Bright citrus acidity keeps it fresh and the finish crisp.
Or, as Ardal puts it:
“And three Rosés because one is never enough.”
The Estate Table
Spring on the Plate
The vineyard isn't the only thing that changes with the season. Spring brings asparagus, zucchini, corn, nectarines, strawberries, blueberries, pear, local honey and fresh herbs into the kitchen — and the menu changes with them. The food at Hidden River Estate has never fitted particularly neatly into one box. Yohan brings his French culinary background and years of experience as a chef. Ardal brings flavours and influences that go back to his Middle Eastern family roots. And surrounding both is Pemberton — its seasons, its produce and what is available right now.
“My Middle Eastern family roots have always influenced the way I think about food and flavour. Yohan brings a completely different perspective through his French background and experience as a chef. Add the produce we have around us here in Pemberton and you end up with something that's difficult to put in a box — which I quite like. It's Hidden River Estate food.” — Ardal
Spring on the plate at Hidden River Estate.
You can see that combination across the spring menu.
WA Fish of the Day
Asparagus cardamom cream, baby spring vegetables, almonds, pickled asparagus and Chardonnay glaze.
Advieh-Spiced Chicken
Zucchini cream, risoni, zucchini, walnut, pomegranate, burnt onion chutney and rose-water glaze.
Try Me Summer Gâteau
Strawberry and capsicum cream, capsicum jam, walnut praliné, strawberry-capsicum sorbet and Syrah glaze.
Different influences. What's in season. What's growing around us. And a kitchen bringing it all together in its own way.
The easiest way to understand it is to come and eat it.
From the Region
Small Creatures, Big Work
Spring changes the Southern Forests quickly. Blossom appears. Gardens wake up. Orchards and farms begin another cycle. And behind much of what follows are some very small workers. Bees and other pollinators play an enormous role in the food system around us — far beyond the honey jar.
“You say bees and everyone immediately thinks honey. But that's only part of it. Look at what's growing around us and how much of it relies on pollination, and suddenly you've got a much more interesting story to tell through food.” — Ardal
SATURDAY 24 OCTOBER 2026 · SPRING EVENT
Bee-Long Table Evening
As part of the Northcliffe Bee Festival, we're bringing people together at Hidden River Estate for a four-course seasonal degustation celebrating bees, pollination and the food they help make possible.
This isn't a dinner where every course tastes of honey.
It's a dinner about the much bigger connection between pollinators, growers, produce and what eventually arrives on our table.
A glass of Hidden River Estate Blanc de Blanc is included on arrival, with the full bar open for additional wines, cocktails and other drinks throughout the evening.
$170 per person + booking fee
READ — WHY BEES MATTER TO THE FOOD ON OUR TABLE
Looking Ahead
What's Coming at Hidden River Estate
“Apparently we're supposed to have a quiet period somewhere in the year. We haven't found it yet.” — Ardal
Bee-Long Table Evening
24 October 2026 Four courses celebrating bees, pollination and spring produce.
Spring at the Estate
The new seasonal menu is on the table. Come for lunch, stay for a glass and give yourself enough time not to rush either.
Ardal's Selection
The first Spring Selection has been chosen. Six bottles. Hand selected by Ardal. Delivered every three months.
The Online Cellar
We’re making it easier to take a little of Hidden River Estate home. Our wines and mixed sixes, Ardal’s Selection and gift vouchers — all together in the new Online Cellar.
2027 Indulgent Truffle Experiences
26 June & 24 July 2027 The grove will be waiting. Bookings are now open for next winter.
And Then, Summer…
Longer afternoons. Another selection from Ardal. More from the kitchen, vineyard and estate. And the next issue of The Hidden River Estate Journal.
Around the Fire
Until Next Season
When I look back on a season, I don't tend to remember how many plates we served or bottles we opened.
I remember the people around the tables.
The birthdays. The conversations. Familiar faces coming back through the door. People who arrived not knowing one another and were still talking a few hours later.
That's really what makes this place what it is.
So, to everyone who joined us this winter — thank you for being part of it.
And now it's spring.
We hope we'll see you around the table.
Ardal & the Hidden River Estate Family
Stay in the Loop
Seasonal stories from the vineyard, kitchen and forest, new experiences, wine releases and the occasional note from Ardal.
Comments