11 of the best food experiences in regional Victoria
LOOKING for an excuse to get away for the weekend? Tempt your tastebuds with these must-do dining moments in regional Victoria.
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LOOKING for an excuse to get away for the weekend? Why not get a taste for the countryside with a gourmet weekend away at one of regional Victoria’s hottest gastronomic destinations.
From the Goldfields to Gippsland to the Great Ocean Road, these are 11 of the must-do dining events you won’t want to miss in 2017.
SHORTEST LUNCH
On June 24-25 — the shortest weekend of the year — Yarra Valley’s small-scale wineries will put on a moving feast of entree-size meals. Take a self-guided tour of the Yarra Valley’s boutique wineries and savour great food, wine and music.
yarravalleysmallerwineries.com.au
WINTER WINE WEEKEND
Over the Queen’s Birthday weekend, savour award-winning wines at the Winter Wine Weekend. Kicking off with the Wine Fest at Red Hill Showgrounds, where more than 200 wines from almost 50 wineries will be available to taste, the weekend also features wine seminars, tutored tastings and cellar door activities — and lots of delicious food.
TOAST TO THE COAST
On the other side of the bay there are also great wines being produced. Explore the three subregions — the Bellarine, Moorabool Valley and Surf Coast — with food, entertainment and tastings at wineries during the two-day Toast to the Coast on the Melbourne Cup long weekend.
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GREAT OCEAN ROAD CHOCOLATERIE
With free tastings and demonstrations from European master chocolatiers, this new addition to the Great Ocean Road’s attractions is very sweet. With more than 250 types of handmade chocolates and ice creams to choose from, there are tastes and treats galore for the whole family.
HIGH COUNTRY BREWERS
It’s all about beer in the High Country — new breweries include Rutherglen Brewery, Social Bandit and Blizzard Brewery, adding to stalwarts Bridge Road and Bright Brewery. Meet the brewers over a brew in the High Country sun.
RARE HARE
Opening its doors just this week, Rare Hare is the fancy (and ambitious) new eatery and cellar door for Willow Creek winery. Guy Stanaway serves up seasonal peninsula produce — think kangaroo tartare with shiso and slow-roasted lamb with harissa and smoked yoghurt — designed to go with the prime vineyard views, and, of course, Geraldine McFaul’s award-winning wines. And on April 1, the adjoining luxury boutique hotel Jackalope will open, where 46 rooms will provide immersive wine and vineyard experiences, complemented by degustation dining in the hotel’s Doot Doot Doot restaurant. DS
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TARRAWARRA ESTATE
It has always been a beacon for quality wine and food in the Yarra Valley but Healesville’s Tarrawarra Estate now boasts an underground cellar door and renovated dining room guided by new head chef Troy Matthew Spencer.
Diamond clams and charred corn, kingfish and witlof, banana cake ... Chef Spencer Guthrie (ex-Yering Station) is sending out dishes that compliment vigneron Clare Halloran’s exceptional wines. And Tarrawarra’s awesome tasting room, burrowed deep into the landscape, is the place to sample them. SP
TALBOT PROVEDORE AND EATERY
The charming Central Goldfields town of Talbot has a pub, a bookstore and a farmers’ market.
Now it has a restaurant as well. Talbot Provedore and Eatery (42 Scandinavian Crescent), which opened in December, is wowing locals and visitors alike with dishes sourced from the district’s very best farmers and growers. Provedore chiefs Christopher Howe and Jayne Newgreen are so run off their feet, they recommend people book ahead for a Saturday night table. SP
MA CAVE IN KYNETON
As inviting as any Left Bank bistro, Midnight Starling in Kyneton now has a private room below stairs where chef Steven Rogers can really show off his French flair.
Ma Cave, open Friday and Saturday nights, is limited to 24 guests at a time. So if you book this exclusive subterranean space, all bluestone and exposed beams, expect to settle in for degustation dining (five or eight courses) ... and be transported to the wine ‘caves’ of Paris. SP
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GIPPSLAND’S CULINARY BEACON
Though it’s where some of the state’s best produce is grown, Gippsland has never managed to establish itself as a destination for foodies. But times are a-changin’ at Lindenow, near Bairnsdale, thanks to couple Anton Eisenmenger and Tanya Bertino who opened Long Paddock in Tanya’s hometown in May after stints at The Ledbury in London, the two Michelin-starred Le Jardin des Sens at Montpellier in France and Cumulus Inc and Vue de Monde in Melbourne. The result is a rustic country cafe with city bistro smarts and a growing legion of fans prepared to detour off the Princes Hwy for one of Anton’s already legendary pies served steaming hot from the Scotch oven. Local produces features heavily on the simple but superbly executed menu, none more so than in the lemon tart that Tanya makes fresh each day with lemons donated exclusively from local gardens.
On March 31, 24 regional World’s Longest Lunches will be held across Victoria. From Bendigo to Woodend, the lunches will take place simultaneously, providing an escape from the city while celebrating produce of the local area.
Tickets: melbournefoodandwine.com.au
For more ideas on food and wine events across the state: visitvictoria.com.au
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