In Western Australia’s Swan Valley, Mandoon Estate offers more than acclaimed wine and dining. On Whadjuk Noongar Country, it is also a place where visitors can discover the stories, flavours and cultural knowledge that have shaped this landscape for generations.

At the heart of this connection is Noongar Elder, cultural educator and bushfoods specialist Dale Tilbrook, whose long-standing relationship with Mandoon Estate gives visitors the opportunity to experience another side of the Swan Valley.

From Country to the World

That relationship was recently celebrated when Mandoon Estate hosted From Country to the World, an inaugural bushfoods and cultural showcase created with Western Australian not-for-profit Prepare Produce Provide (PPP).

The evening brought together First Nations Elders, students, bushfoods specialists, educators and leading chefs, celebrating the role food can play in sharing culture and creating opportunities for the next generation.

At its heart were Gold Medal-winning students from the inaugural WA Secondary School Bushfoods Competition. Guests tasted their inventive dishes featuring native ingredients including finger lime, native thyme and wattleseed, before the students take their creations to the National Competition in Melbourne.

Mandoon Estate Executive Chef Michael Hartnell and Wild Swan Executive Chef Anthony Power joined an experienced team of chefs and mentors supporting the young cooks.

The evening also raised funds towards PPP’s planned First Nations Youth Delegation to Terra Madre 2026 in Italy, where young people will have the opportunity to share their culture and knowledge while connecting with Indigenous communities and food traditions from around the world.

Taste, listen and learn with Dale Tilbrook

For travellers, Mandoon Estate’s relationship with Dale can be experienced firsthand through her Bush Tucker Tasting.

Hosted at Mandoon Estate, this immersive cultural experience introduces guests to native Australian ingredients, their traditional uses and their connection to Country. Through tasting and storytelling, Dale shares knowledge of the Swan Valley and its Traditional Owners, revealing a cultural landscape that extends far beyond the vineyards.

It’s an opportunity not simply to taste bushfoods, but to understand the stories behind them — and to experience the Swan Valley through a different lens.

A deeper connection to the Swan Valley

Mandoon Estate’s support of From Country to the World forms part of its broader commitment to recognising and celebrating the Aboriginal heritage of the land on which it operates.

That commitment includes its Reflect Reconciliation Action Plan and Maya Maya, the Estate’s 32-room accommodation, whose name means “camp” in local language and acknowledges the site's significance as a traditional camping place for Whadjuk Noongar people.

Together with wine, dining and luxury accommodation, experiences such as Dale’s Bush Tucker Tasting allow visitors to connect more deeply with this remarkable place.

For travellers looking for an experience that goes beyond the cellar door, it is a chance to taste, listen and learn — and discover a story of the Swan Valley that has been thousands of years in the making.

Discover the Bush Tucker Talk and Taste at Mandoon Estate through Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia.