Hot Tips for Secret Sips

38 SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 8, 2019 FOOD AND WINE VICTORIA Jones Winery cellar door dates to the 1860s; Stanton & Killeen Wines has added a nip of Portugal to its vines; Provenance restaurant in HOT TIPS FOR Beechworth has a Japanese- inspired menu. SECRET SIPS PICTURES: SUPPLIED Discover the hidden wineries and hot eateries of Victoria’s North East JOHANNA LEGGATT JONES WINERY hen a regional area WINES WITH HISTORY Hot tip: If you really want to soak vineyard platters with local produce. becomes a tourist The Rutherglen township has become up the atmosphere of the vineyards, You can also grab lunch among the ESCAPE ROUTE drawcard, often one or the lodestar of the North East wine you can book a glamping tent at vines at Amulet Wines. two towns will crowd region but it’s far from cookie cutter. Cofield Wines’ vineyards. the limelight. Over Stanton & Killeen Wines, for example, RED GUM PLACE time, that spotlight goes back as far as seven generations THEN THERE IS THE FOOD… Assuming you actually want a break BEECHWORTH Wwidens to the surrounding towns, as to 1875. However, rather than There is no shortage of places to eat in from imbibing wine and devouring visitors “discover” the charms of specialising in the shiraz and durif Beechworth or Rutherglen, with each food, there are a number of country AND nearby, less touristy pockets. grapes that have made this region township sourcing produce from the walks that give you a real sense of the RUTHERGLEN This is especially true of Victoria’s famous, Stanton & Killeen Wines surrounding area to support local natural beauty of the North East. North East, often referred to broadly started planting Portuguese varieties farmers. The paddock-to-plate I would head straight for a walk along as the High Country, which was once in the 1950s, bringing the likes of tinta philosophy is in evidence here with the Murray River where you can still a rest break on the way to the ski roriz, tinta barroca, touriga and tinta bakeries, cafes, wineries and hatted see red river gums, some as old as GETTING THERE fields, but has become a destination cao to North East Victoria. The winery restaurants all doing their bit to draw 600 years, lining the banks. Beechworth and Rutherglen are in its own right. is worth a visit for the large and from the surrounding food bowl. Shorter walks can also be found roughly three hours’ drive from The North East has been gifted imperious old oak barrels alone. Beechworth’s two-hatted around the historical highlights of central Melbourne. with many attractive and historic If it’s a beautiful cellar door Provenance Restaurant offers a each township, where you can retrace villages and townships and the towns experience you’re after, then you can’t Japanese-inspired tasting menu, the footsteps of early settlers, High STAYING THERE of Rutherglen and Beechworth are a go past Mandy Jones’s Jones Winery with locally sourced mushrooms and Country cattlemen and, naturally, Golden Heritage Accommodation is great place to start exploring. and Vineyard. Mandy is a fifth- vegetables. All of the wines, too, are Ned Kelly. The Walk High Country situated just past the main town of Situated at the heart of cattle and generation winemaker who spent from Beechworth, King Valley or the website (walkhighcountry.com.au) is Beechworth and offers renovated bushranger country, with main years plying her trade in the Bordeaux Alpine Valleys. a great place to curate your afternoon motel accommodation with streets that retain their 19th-century wine region of France. Her brother, In the heart of Rutherglen, the constitutional. comfortable beds from $125 a night. charm, the towns have some of the Arthur, manages the vineyards and acclaimed Tuileries uses as much Hot tip: Stop and have a peek at There’s also a range of spa cottages best wine and food in the region. And, farm while Mandy concentrates on local produce as possible, including The Historic and Cultural Precinct and apartments available for what’s more, the locals will welcome making a wide variety of whites and pork and lamb, while in Beechworth, of Beechworth (you can’t miss it) as couples and families. you wherever you go, keen to spread reds. The cellar door dates back to the Project 49 offers a small but you drive through, which features the the word, no doubt, about their 1860s and makes a perfect weekend delicious range of local produce town’s old court house, telegraph MORE victoriashighcountry.com.au hidden delights (that are guaranteed lunch spot, where you can choose artfully arranged in sandwiches, station, town hall, a museum and cell, not to remain hidden for long). between mains of goat, fish, beef, platters and incorporated into which at one time housed the duck, as well as a vegetarian option. delicious baked eggs. legendary bushranger. SMALL CELLARS A short drive away is Cofield Wines, Hot tip: Many of the local wineries FOR MORE LOCAL Beechworth is well known for its where owner Damien Cofield is do fantastic charcuterie plates and THE WRITER WAS A GUEST OF TOURISM HOLIDAY IDEAS, VISIT attractive main street and bakery but especially proud of his sparkling platters. The Pickled Sisters Cafe is at NORTH EAST OVER THE FEAST HIGH COUNTRY ESCAPE.COM.AU/VIC its smattering of artisan wineries may Shiraz and (very drinkable) rosé. Cofield Wines and offers a choice of FESTIVAL WEEKEND be the region’s best-kept secret. Many of these are young wineries, often family-run, with passion to boot. The geography of the region partly explains why the wines taste so good PROVENANCE STANTON & KILLEEN here, with ancient volcanic activity creating an altitude of between 300m and 800m in the region. The composition of the soil helps, too, with granite imbuing the wine with finesse and elegance, while the shale reportedly helps create a fuller body. A handful of wineries have started opening their doors on the second weekend of the month, between September and June, as part of the Beechworth Hidden Wineries program. You can drop in for a cellar visit at the likes of Amulet Wines, Haldon Estate, Baarmutha Wines and Indigo Vineyard from 11am-4pm. Hot tip: If you do happen to visit outside of the Hidden Winery hours, you may be able to arrange a visit by appointment (beechworth.com). MHSE01Z02ES - V1.

Load more