Wineries & Cellar Doors
Savour every drop
Want to explore an unpretentious, yet highly awarded wine region that is big on flavour, yet without the crowds you might expect?
The Macedon Ranges wine region is one of Victoria’s best‑kept secrets. Home to almost 50 wineries and 18 cellar doors, it produces some of the state’s most awarded and highly regarded wines, stretching from Lancefield in the east to Daylesford in the west.
Further north, in Harcourt, you’ll find more boutique, family‑run vineyards that form part of the Bendigo wine region, adding even more depth and diversity to the area’s wine offering.
Wineries & Cellar Doors
Varieties: the spice of life
If you’re looking for something different while visiting Victoria’s Heartland, give wild barrel-fermented riesling a go. Celebrating? Try a sparkling wine made from chardonnay and nebbiolo. Maybe you want to try an unusual varietal? You’re covered because there’s gamay, lagrein, grüner veltliner and more.
But it’s not all new. The Macedon Ranges have been producing some of Victoria’s best chardonnay, pinot noir and sparkling wines for more than 50 years. Famed names have been forged here, including Llew Knight at Granite Hills, Alan Cooper at Cobaw Ridge and Michael Dhillon at Bindi Wines.
You’ll recognise a creative approach to winemaking. At Hesket Estate just outside Woodend, the Hudspeth Stevenson family crafts sustainable wines, served at its cellar door within a cleverly converted shearing shed. In Romsey, Mount Monument’s winemaker Ben Ranken focuses on regenerative farming practices – taste the results while wandering through the sculpture garden. Art is also on view in the curated gallery at Kyneton Ridge Estate.
Although the region has grown significantly in recent decades, there’s a deep winemaking knowledge. Some of the region’s current stars, including Cameron Leith at Passing Clouds, have taken the reins at their respective vineyards from their fathers.
Tasting sensations
At Hanging Rock Winery, you’ll discover one of the great pillars of the region. Here you can sip on sparkling wine, riesling, chardonnay, pinot noir and shiraz as you take in spectacular views of the rock and Mount Macedon.
Immersed within a state forest and surrounded by ancient gum trees, the cellar door at Wombat Forest Vineyard is a hidden delight at Denver, halfway between Daylesford and Kyneton.
Feel as though you’ve been transported to Europe as you enjoy a tasting in the stunning light-filled cellar door at Lancefield’s Lyons Will Estate, which overlooks surrounding vines. Want more beautiful views with a glass of wine? Try Kyneton Ridge, with its cellar door, cafe and art gallery, and Granite Hills, a family-owned vineyard and winery, located high on a boulder-strewn hill near Baynton.
Old vines raised organically and pruned and picked by hand produce the grapes for the renowned, award-winning range at Cobaw Ridge. It was the first commercial producer of lagrein in Australia and also makes chardonnay, pinot noir and syrah.
Meet the Winemakers – Paramoor & Kyneton Ridge
Discover the stories behind Paramoor and Kyneton Ridge and find out what’s happening at Budburst.
Explore more about Meet the Winemakers – Paramoor & Kyneton RidgePerfect matches
With wine comes food. Enjoy the views, a cheese platter and a glass of bubbles at Parkside Winery in Lancefield, or feast on a grazing platter paired with a pinot noir at Captains Creek Organic Wines in Blampied.
Sip on Italian varietals matched with enoteca-style fare at Mount Towrong Vineyard or head over to Le Bouchon at Attwoods in Glenlyon for a French-inspired lunch. Welcoming Paramoor Winery at Carlsruhe offers wood-fired pizzas and wine tastings in a rustic horse barn amid slow-ripened pinot noir, riesling and pinot gris vines.
After exploring the underground cellar door at Cleveland Estate in Lancefield, pop into Carriage House Restaurant, which offers wood-fired pizza lunches on the weekend and intimate dinners on Friday and Saturday nights.
Created by Nonda Katsalidis, the architect behind Hobart’s MONA and Eureka Tower in Melbourne, stunning Mount Monument at Romsey includes a cellar door and sprawling sculpture park, as well as a restaurant. Here, fine food and estate-grown wine come together during four-course lunches, served from Friday to Sunday.
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