Margaret River’s Pair’d Festival announced its 2026 program earlier this month, and the ambition has only sharpened. Across four days from Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 November, more than 40 wine led events will spill across beaches, forests, caves and vineyards, pulling together a genuinely unlikely cast: Dave Pynt returning home from Burnt Ends in Singapore, Austrian DJ duo turned winemakers Kruder & Dorfmeister playing their only Australian show in a decade, and a two Michelin star chef from London matched with Margaret River’s Vasse Felix.
At the centre of it all is The Grand Tasting at Howard Park Wines, the one event of the year where the region’s most prestigious producers gather on a single lawn. This year it includes Museum Masterclasses hosted by Erin Larkin as well as Nick Ryan in the Howard Park Wine Chapel, tracing some of the oldest and rarest wines ever made in Margaret River.
Host Erin Larkin does not review wine the way most people review wine. She came to it through fashion and fine art, writes full time for The Wine Advocate, and dresses for a tasting the same way she talks about a great bottle, with control and ease. Ahead of her Museum Masterclasses at Pair’d this November, we caught up with her to talk texture, honesty, and the one thing about Western Australia that no other wine region on earth can copy.
You’re at Pair’d three times this year, in a cave, at a long table, and across the Grand Tasting floor. Which one are you most curious about?
Music in the ancient limestone cave was one of the more moving experiences of my year last year. I cannot wait to hear this again, and this year promises some extra surprises. Dining in the forest at a long table is equally unbeatable, and as for the Grand Tasting, that’s the place for wine lovers. At the masterclasses we look at some of the oldest and rarest wines ever made in Margaret River. So which one am I most curious about? It has got to be the final lists for the masterclasses. They change every year, and every year it’s a surprise and delight.
The beauty in every event is the mix of people who turn up. It’s fundamentally the uncontrollable variable, and ultimately what makes it more interesting than drinking wine at home.
You came to wine through fasion and fine art. What did those years actually teach you that the cellar didn’t?
Texture. Fibre, construction and design are integral to fashion, and it wasn’t something I expected to be able to understand so viscerally in wine. But of course wine relies on texture the way fabric relies on weave.
You’re known for being a very sharp dresser. Approaching a festival like this, how do you express yourself through your wardrobe?
There’s so much more to say here, but in a nutshell, I dress how I want to, whatever brings me joy. Clothes are so much more than shelter for our bodies. They are an external representation of our priorities and proclivities. When I get dressed for a wine event, I want to feel in control but also happy and relaxed. I need to be comfortable, and just as able to pick up a dozen box of wine or clear a table, as I am able to be polished, eloquent and expressive at the front of the room. Wine is a luxury product, but it’s also an agricultural product, and I try never to forget either. Somehow what I wear has to reflect that too.
Reviewing full time for The Wine Advocate means a lot of glasses. How do you keep the palate sharp and the writing fresh?
I sleep well, I try not to drink too much, and I eat well. Keeping the writing fresh is one of my big priorities, though it’s a challenge when I am writing so much. Genuine curiosity keeps me grounded. The desire to keep it interesting is rooted in respecting the effort of every producer who grows and makes wine, and either makes time for me at their wineries or sends it to me. I am endlessly fascinated by wine, it never gets boring. Almost every decision in wine has a reason behind it, so I seek to understand the reasons. I don’t always have to agree, but I do have to be respectful. That, hopefully, keeps every wine note new and fresh.
Western Australia is your patch. What is the one defining feature you think is impossible to replicate anywhere else in the world when it comes to winemaking?
That’s a tough question. The world is big, and people talk to each other now more than ever. Advances in viticulture or winemaking are often shared, so the boundaries between cultures are starting to blur. But you know what doesn’t change? Place. Western Australia is blessed with a combination of benevolent weather, ancient geography and unique biodiversity. The wines are a product of the place, which is what makes them so special. It’s what makes all great regions around the world special. Their inextricability from place.
One of the things that makes the Pair’d Grand Tasting so special is seeing many of Margaret River’s most celebrated wineries together in one place. How rare is that, and what does it let guests experience that they couldn’t anywhere else?
It’s a pretty fantastic opportunity. I know of a Burgundy immersion festival that happens each year, and a very cool, somewhat underground event in the Loire Valley, but in both instances the tastings aren’t woven into local fine food, live music and a festival atmosphere. As far as I know, Pair’d is unique. I wish there were more of them around Australia and the world.
You only recommend the things you love. How has staying true to that shaped the trust you’ve built with your audience over the years?
I realised early on in my life that I’d rather people like me, or not, for who I am, and not for what I’m trying to be. It’s the same for my wine reviews. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that if I stay true to the things that I love, the consistency of recommendations is perfectly repeatable. Honesty is by far and away the best policy, and this is especially relevant to wine.
“Drink well, time is short.” Where did that come from, and what should people drink this festival to honour it?
It’s kind of my life motto. It applies to wine, it applies to fashion, it applies to people. It’s applicable to everything in life, no? I don’t waste my time with things I don’t like. There are so many great wines in this country, it’s easy to find something excellent to drink. Don’t waste what little time we’ve got enduring the things that don’t do it for you.
Tickets for Pair’d Margaret River Region are moving fast, with the full 2026 program and travel packages available via pairdmargaretriver.com. Following a strong launch, Nature’s Table has already sold out, with other signature events selling quickly. Guests hoping to secure a seat at the Grand Tasting or the Pair’d Beach Club are encouraged to book soon, while those interested in sold-out events should join the waitlists in case additional places become available. Interstate guests can fly direct from Sydney and Melbourne into Busselton Margaret River Airport.
Pair’d runs from Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 November 2026.