Discovering Rutherglen
/
Needing little introduction, Rutherglen is one of Victoria’s premier wine and food destinations and has become synonymous with the production of world famous muscats and muscadelles. Boasting something for everyone, Rutherglen is home to over 20 award winning wineries and a range of outstanding restaurants and cafes which make the most of Rutherglen’s stunning local produce. Combined with beautifully tranquil camping, fishing and swimming locations, historic riding trails and superb local olives and chocolate, Rutherglen is truly a perfect holiday destination.
Gastrology had the opportunity to spend three wonderful days exploring the region. Here’s what we got up to!
DAY 1
11 am - Muscat tasting at All Saints Estate
All Saints Estate is a family owned winery established in 1864 and located on the banks of the Murray River in Wahgunyah, part of the famed Rutherglen Wine region of North-East Victoria. Today, Eliza, Angela and Nicholas Brown make up the fourth-generation wine family who own and run All Saints Estate.
Each taking on different roles within the business (Eliza as CEO, Angela overseeing sales and marketing and Nicholas heading up the winemaking team as general manager), their passion has culminated in outstanding wines and a wonderful winery experience.
All Saints Estate philosophy is about quality and tradition from vineyard to bottle. Utilising traditional vineyard practices, hand picking and sorting of the grapes through to gentle pressing in their 100 year-old basket press.
Set within a castle facade originally built in 1864 to resemble the Castle of Mey, and surrounded by beautifully manicured gardens, a visit to the winery's heritage listed cellar door is a magical experience. The winery offers tastings at the cellar door, but for those seeking a more in-depth experience, All Saints Estate also offers private tastings which we were privileged to partake in at The Family Cellar.
We loved being taken through a private tasting of All Saints Estate's award winning Muscats while learning about the region’s Muscat classifications. We even had the opportunity to try their 100 year old Museum Muscat!
With vines planted more than 90 years ago, All Saints Estate is a winery run by a passionate family which honours traditional values and techniques in the heart of one of Victoria's premier food and wine destinations.
1 pm - Lunch at Tuileries, De Bortoli Rutherglen Estate
Tuileries is a stunning restaurant that was originally established over 30 years ago. The menu heroes local produce as much as possible, perfectly complemented with a range of local wines by the glass or bottle. We loved tasting our way through the extensive menu. Highlights include the oregano and garlic marinated lamb cutlet served with herb zucchini ribbons and mint sauce as well as the roast pork cutlet served with burnt pineapple butter, rainbow chard and bacon jus.
2.30 pm - Rutherglen Unearthed at Campbells Wines
Rutherglen may be world famous for its muscats and muscadelle and for its big red wine varietal, the durif, but there is a lot more to discover. At Campbell Wines, we met a range of producers and tasted through a broad range of alternative white wines and lighter style reds, relatively undiscovered by the Australian palate. An absolute highlight of our tasting was Stanton & Killeen’s 2018 The Prince Iberian Blend which comprises 42% Tinta Roriz, 30% Touriga Nacional, 22% Tinta Cao and 6% Tinta Barroca which are Portuguese varietals that the winery planted in the 1990s. It was a gorgeous medium bodied wine which boasted cherry and wild berry flavours and velvety tannins.
4pm - Check in to Tuileries, De Bortoli Rutherglen Estate
We loved staying in one of the Tuileries’ 12 Vineyard Rooms. The room was spacious with a comfortable sitting area, and a verandah leading onto the beautiful vineyard. It was certainly an ideal base for our Rutherglen getaway.
7pm - Dinner at Jones Winery
Owners and siblings Arthur and Mandy Jones are the team behind this wonderful boutique winery and both share a simple philosophy - let the grapes do the talking. And boy do the grapes have a lot to say.
Courtesy of Jones’ 115 year old dry land vineyard, century old fermenting vats and Mandy’s extensive winemaking experience (Mandy spent 14 years working in Bordeaux), Jones Winery & Vineyard produces wonderful expressions of the Rutherglen “terroir” ranging from old vine shiraz and grenache, marsanne, malbec and durif as well as fortifieds such as their unique 'Apero' and 'Classic Muscat'. Whatever you do, make sure to try their highly acclaimed 'LJ' which is blend of predominantly shiraz with a touch of granache, sourced from Jones’ 115 year old vineyard – it really is a stunning, elegant wine.
Located within a recently renovated, atmospheric brick barn, the cellar door adjoins a delightful French brasserie which ties back to Mandy’s time in Bordeaux. It is clear that authenticity is key and the menu is filled with delicious, classic dishes that pair perfectly with Jones’ wines.
We thoroughly enjoyed our degustation dinner that has been carefully prepared by Briony Bradford, Head Chef at Jones Winery Restaurant. Perfectly matched to Jones Winery Restaurant’s French country kitchen style, Briony’s penchant for French cuisine has been garnished from her time spent with mentors that include Michelin star chefs Claude Bosi at Hibiscus and Andre Garret at Galvin at Windows in London; and Paul Cooper at Bishop Sessa, Ross Lusted at The Bridge Room, Grant King at Gastro Park and Brent Savage at The Bentley Restaurant and Bar in Sydney.
Briony’s approaches to food include ‘nose to tail’, wasting nothing and selecting only seasonal and local produce from growers and suppliers she knows personally.
Having been in the Jones family since 1927, Jones Winery & Vineyard has a rich history but continues to evolve and develop under the impressive leadership of Arthur and Mandy. With brilliant wines, a wonderful brasserie and a truly tranquil location, Jones Winery & Vineyard is exceptional in every way.
DAY 2
8.30 am - Breakfast & Sustainability Session at Lake Moodemere Estate
We started our day at the picturesque Lake Moodemere Estate where we were joined by next-generation winemakers Joel Chambers, Tash Killeen and Harry Perry for an informative breakfast-table conversation about sustainability and how Lake Moodemere Estate, Stanton & Killeen as well as Olive Hills Estate are each leading the way in their estate-grown produce techniques to ensure a more sustainable future for the region. It was exciting to hear Joel’s experience with Sustainable Winegrowing Australia (SWA) (Australia’s national program for grapegrowers and winemakers to demonstrate sustainability in the vineyard and winery) and his successful journey to making Lake Moodemere Estate a winery that is certified sustainable by SWA.
11.30 am - Muscat tasting and blending at Pfeiffer Wines
We loved meeting the beautiful family behind Pfeiffer Wines, an iconic Rutherglen winery. Managing Partner and Senior Winemaker, Chris and his youngest daughter Jennifer (who is also a winemaker at the Estate) produce over 30 wines at the winery, from elegant, award winning Rieslings, to world famous fortified styles.
We throughly enjoyed the opportunity to experience Pfeiffer Wines’ True Muscat Experience.
We were welcomed to Pfeiffer Wines’ century old barrel room where we began the experience by syphoning Muscat straight from the barrel using a ‘wine thief.’
Jennifer then guided us through a delicious tasting of Pfeiffer Wines’ four Muscat classifications and two barrel samples. It was then our turn to become Muscat Master Blenders! We had a go at making three of our very own Muscat trials and then once we decided on which one we liked the most, we then made up a 200ml blend of the Muscat, to take home as our very own. It was a truly fun and interactive experience. Highly recommended!
1pm - Lunch at Footsteps, Cofield Wines
Located within the Cofield winery in the heart of Rutherglen, Footsteps is a vibrant, welcoming destination which is perfect for lazing on a sunny afternoon with friends over a delicious lunch or spot of afternoon tea.
We enjoyed meeting passionate Cofield owner and winemaker Damien Cofield who shared with us his inspiration and quest for continuous improvement across all aspects of the Cofield winery. The menu has an emphasis on quality, local food and wine. Everything we had was cooked beautifully. Our top picks are the pork belly and steak dishes. Just yum!
2.30pm - Wine Tasting at Cofield
After lunch, we joined a number of the region’s winemakers for a casual session discovering celebratory and summery reds, from various local signature Durif, Shiraz and Sparkling Reds; to new, less common red varietals. One of our favourite wines during the tasting was Olive Hills Estate’s Shiraz Malbec 2017 which was just sheer elegance. Think rich red fruits with beautifully balanced oak and touch of spice. Olive Hills Estate is one of the few wineries the area that do not irrigate, allowing the terroir to truly shine through in the bottle. Just beautiful. Another stunner was Morris Wines’ 2018 CHM Durif. If you love your big, bold reds, this for you. This was a classic exemplar of a magnificent Rutherglen Durif - full-bodied and brimming with seductive blue and black berries.
7pm - Dinner at Thousand Pound Wine Bar & Store
Thousand Pound is the brainchild of the siblings that run All Saints Estate.
Stepping into this oh so chique venue which is housed in an original Victorian store, the focus is clear - wine. Floor to ceiling wine racks showing off a vast collection divide the dining area into two and a long wooden bar runs almost the entire length of the venue.
This contemporary monochromatic fitout does not come at the expense of warmth, as Thousand Pound exudes a welcoming atmosphere courtesy of the extensive use of rich timbers.
The wine selection has been thoughtfully curated by Nick Brown with family and friends in mind. With wines sourced predominantly from family owned wineries, and winemakers and wineries that Nick admires, Thousand Pound is a one stop destination to taste all the best this prolific wine region has to offer.
The menu is designed to support the wonderful wines on offer and is versatile enough to take you from a light bite all the way through to dinner.
We loved the simple but delicious menu - think pan-fried Kefalotyri cheese, roasted ocean trout, steaks and a beautiful cheese platter and decadent brownies to finish.
DAY 3
8.30am - Breakfast & Sourdough Masterclass at Valentine’s
Valentines Bakehouse was started by Ross and Kay Perry in 1991. Today, their three children, Harry, Joseph and Matilda run the business together with their respective strengths and passions to further develop, expand and refine the quality of the baked goods and iconic sourdough produced. We loved hearing about their beautiful story and tasting our way through their brunch menu. You can also expect brilliant coffee which is roasted by Harry under the brand White Owl Coffee.
11am - Rutherglen Redux at Scion
At Scion, we wandered the room to taste our way through innovative creations with Rowly from Scion and David from Morris Wines and also enjoyed a Correll, Apera and Amontillado masterclass with Mandy Jones from Jones Winery. It was interesting to understand the new and creative wine-related products that are being introduced by these winemakers including a Muscat Gin from Scion as well as an Aged Amber Apera from Morris Wines.
12pm - Rutherglen Reimagined at Buller Wines
Our final stop was Buller Wines where we discovered a new wave of drinks born from iconic local styles including fortifieds, gin and whisky blends with Buller Wines and Morris Wines. It was exciting to see the range of new products that this region may become known for in the future.
1pm - Lunch at Pavillion, Buller Wines
The talented team at Pavillion have developed a passion for fresh food, seasonality and using regional produce. The crispy skin salmon was a true highlight. It was a dish which allowed the natural sweetness of the exceedingly fresh salmon to shine through. The accompaniments of lemon croquettes and pickled vegetables were each wonderfully prepared.
For something heartier, the pork belly served with carrots, roast onion and apple sauce was certainly satisfying. Having truly mastered the art of pork roasting, the generous pork belly slice had been succulently roasted to retain a porky juiciness, thereby achieving a healthy layer of melt-in-the-mouth fat in the process and wonderful crackling.
Pavilion is the perfect excuse to escape the hustle and bustle of Melbourne and enjoy an a delicious dining experience in Rutherglen.
One of Australia’s oldest and premier wine producing regions, Rutherglen presents an abundance of wining, dining and boutique accommodation options as well as cycling paths and walking trails. We simply cannot wait to return.
