in Australiaas definedbytheAustralianWineandBrandy
Corporation.Downtheroadat RidgemillEstatenear
Ballandean,winemakerPeterMcGlashanexplainsthat
thelabelearnsStrangeBirdcredforitsVerdelho,Viognier,
JacquezandSaperavivines.Thelatteris a richlyflavoured
redvarietynativeto Georgia.
“Thewinery’sowner,MartinCooper,gotcuttingsfrom
PeterReadof Symphoniain theKingValley,”Peterexplains.
“It’sbeenverysuccessfulforus.Weevenenteredour
Saperaviin a wineshowin Tbilisi,andwereluckyenough
to wingold.Ridgemillhasrecentlyaddedluxuriously
appointed,self-containedstudiocabinsto thevineyard
settingandtheseareprovingpopularwithcouples,who
enjoythepeaceandquietof thebucolicsetting,notto
mentionthespectacularnightskies.
Nearbyat GoldenGroveEstate,theCostanzofamily
startedgrowingtablegrapesin 1946.Theydiversified
intowinevarieties 30 yearslaterandnowenjoyStrange
inclusionfora raftof ItalianvinesincludingVermentino,
Nerod’AvolaandBarbera.Ontheothersideof the
NewEnglandHighway,SymphonyHillWinesearnsits
StrangestatusforvarietiesincludingPetitVerdotandPetit
Manseng.Butthewineryalsodeservesanexceptional
noteas itsShirazis Queensland’sonlyredwineto
havewongoldmedalsat bothSydneyandMelbourne
RoyalShows.ItsNerod’Avola,CabernetSauvignonandClockwise
from above:
Massive granite
formations
characterise
the landscape;
vineyards and
rolling hills (image
from Granite Belt
Wine Country);
Granite Arch is
on an easy circuit
walk in Girraween
National Park.Gerwürtztranimer are also served in Qantas Business
Class. Other stand-out birds on the map include Pyramids
Road Wines at Wyberba and Robert Channon Wines
at Amiens — esteemed wine writer, maker and judge
James Halliday says Channon produces what is arguably
Australia’s best Verdelho.
All that wine tasting doubtless leaves visitors craving
a palate cleanser. You will fi nd exactly that in the shed
at Brass Monkey Brew House, where former train driver
Ernie Butler has turned his passion for home brew into a
commercial nano brewery. That means his enterprise is
even smaller than a microbrewery, but that doesn’t deter
locals who pack the place out Thursday to Monday and
line up for wood-fi red pizzas and house-made bratwurst
sausages while they’re there.
Back along Eukey Road, Leanne and Andy Williams
of Hidden Creek make wine and and run a cafe in their
lakeside setting. When they’re not experiencing the
drought that is currently devastating the entire district,
diners can sit under tables by the trees or pick up a picnic
hamper and enjoy a sampler of local produce out in the
vineyard. At Jamworks Gourmet Foods in a giant shed
beside the highway at Glen Aplin, Christine Hood and
Steph Ingall have taken over Steph’s parents’ cottage
industry and turned it into a must-visit foodie beacon,
making jams and preserves from the abundant local110 australiancountry.net.auESCAPE ROUTES