A weekend away: Hunter Valley

Al and I made the most of the long weekend here in Canberra, and headed to the Hunter Valley. It was nice to visit a part of Australia I hadn't been before, and it also meant my kids got to spend some quality time with their dad, grandad and great-grandad while we were gone. Given the Hunter is known for its wine and food, I made sure I did plenty of research ahead of the trip to line up the best itinerary I could!

We left Canberra around midday on Friday, stopping at Bendooley Estate in Berrima for a light lunch. It was a great way to start our weekend of wining and dining!

We finally got to our accommodation at about 8pm, after navigating through peak hour Sydney traffic, and then finding a spot for dinner further up the coast. We stayed at Bimbadeen Mountain Retreat, which greeted us with an unexpectedly steep driveway! The cottage however was great, and in the light of the morning we were able to really appreciate the tranquility of the location. It was the perfect, relaxing base for us to explore the region from... well, when we weren't battling the driveway.

With the sun shining on the Saturday morning we decided to visit the Hunter Valley Gardens. I read about it in my research but everything I had read under-sold the place. The gardens were absolutely spectacular and well looked after. Each section followed different themes, including one corner focused around nursery rhymes! We spent longer than we anticipated at the gardens, but it was well worth it.

By the time we left the gardens we were ready to explore what the region is known for... its wines. On our itinerary for the day: Audrey Wilkinson, De iuliis (including a quick bite to eat at Two Fat Blokes Gourmet Kitchen), Tyrrell's and then Brokenwood on the way back to the accommodation. The highlights were definitely the first two, although we did consider we were simply getting wine-tasting fatigue by the time we got to the latter two! A degustation dinner at Esca Bimbadgen topped off a great day.

On the Sunday we woke up to a much wetter day, although the sun was making it's best attempts. After a late breakfast our tour of the vineyards continued... starting with Scarborough. If you can only visit one vineyard in the Hunter Valley, this is the one to stop at. The views were amazing, the service was excellent, the wine-tasting experience memorable, and the wines possibly the best we tried all weekend.

From Scarborough we went up to Bimbadgen (where we had had dinner the evening before), then lunch at Enzo cafe (highly recommended!) before visiting David Hook Winery where David Hook himself took us through his wines. The car a little heavier with a few more bottles to bring home, we headed back to our accommodation via McGuigan Wines.

Al and David Hook

After a good nights rest, we packed our bags, checked out of the accommodation and then went in search for some final vineyards to visit before it was home time. Lake's Folly came up a lot in my research so off we went... the wine was great, but the pricing not so much. Morning tea with some delicious fudge from Hunter Valley Chocolate Factory before visiting one last vineyard.

We finished our trip with lunch at Circa 1876—and wow, what a meal. This Hatted restaurant is beautifully set on the grounds of Convent Pokolbin, and between the service, the food, and the setting, it was a perfect end to our weekend away.  

My dessert... the Circa's version of strawberries and cream. 

Now back to normal routine, although we do have another long weekend here in Canberra so I'm hoping once the housework is done there might be time for some sewing!

Until next time x