What’s Happening In The Hunter Valley…

By Alex Russell on January 23, 2014 in Food

The lower Hunter Valley isn’t all that far from Sydney, but the prospect of Pacific Highway traffic understandably puts a few people off. That said, if you’re patient enough to put your head down and plough through it, the pay off is most certainly worth hours spent cursing behind the wheel of your car.

Accommodation
We stayed at Nightingale Wines near Broke. It’s about a 15-minute drive from Lovedale, but that also means you’re away from the crowds. The villas are very comfortable and you get bubbly on arrival and breakfast hampers throughout your stay, not to mention a welcoming committee of kangaroos and ducks out the front every morning. We tried the restaurant on the first night and were blown away. The food is really top notch (the pork belly with scallops was awesome). Their port is pretty darn good too. Don and Brett were great hosts, so do consider staying here.

Food
While the food at Nightingale was really superb, the highlight was dinner at Margan. The five-course degustation with matching wines (plus a couple of cheeky little extra dishes thrown in there) is right up there with the best restaurants in Sydney, so it’s no wonder they won ‘best restaurant’ awards for the last three years running from both NSW and Hunter Tourism and the 2012 award from Tourism Australia. The food is fresh from the garden, so it changes throughout the year, and the price is reasonable at $95 per head or $130 with matching wines. The wine list has also won awards. Do not miss an opportunity to eat here. If you can’t get in to Margan, the Major’s Lane Smokehouse is also worth a visit and good things about Café Enzo, though it was booked out when we were in town.

Cellar Doors
The Hunter is famous for Semillon and Shiraz, yet Lake’s Folly only makes a Chardonnay and a Cabernet blend, as that is what was planted when it was founded. That said, there’s a very good reason that these are two of the most collected wines in Australia – delicious.

Brokenwood is always a great destination too. Here you’ll get to try a broad variety of styles with a lot of different price points available too. There’s something for everyone, but for me the Maxwell and ILR Semillons stood out.

A lot of different styles are available for tasting at the Small Winemakers Centre. Andrew Thomas is one of my favourite makers and his 2013 Braemore Semillon is picking up awards absolutely everywhere. Do not miss an opportunity to try this wine, even if you think Semillon might not be your thing. The Little Wine Co. has some great drops too, including an amazing Gewurztraminer and a surprising Pinot Gris. For those of you (including me) who find Pinot Gris a bit dull and lifeless, try this one and be amazed. The wine clubs are also worth considering if you want to try some interesting (and very good) wines.

Tyrrell’s was pumping when we wandered in and with good reason. The entry-level wines are always decent, but trying three different single vineyard Semillons (Stevens, HVD and Belford) side-by-side was really interesting. There’s a reason that they’re famous. Bring your own picnic for lunch here.

Finally, the table wines at Drayton’s are really interesting, although many people go there for the fortifieds. They’ll even fill up your 10.5L jerry can with white port for about $63 (price is going up in December). One bloke was waiting for his can to be filled (on a really hot day) and told us off for drinking table wine. “This stuff is the best wine around,” he said as he staggered out of the cellar door.

It seems that there is something for everyone at the Hunter, and it’s definitely worth the pain of the trip up there.