So, flowing down the Eastern Freeway on one of those Riedel-Clear Melbourne days, a splash of moussy white clouds high in the sky, we swirled in on the rolling green hills of the Yarra Valley; first stop, White Rabbit Brewery in Healesville for a refreshing ale.This is a Sunday afternoon destination made in hedonist heaven. A large, sun-drenched veranda with comfy chairs and couches greets us, before entering what really is a makeshift bar, a kind of cobbled together lounge, as our visitor David said, as though the brewery had been pushed aside to accommodate it.
We ordered a round of mixed White Rabbit favourites, a Pipsqueak Cider, clean and refreshing, a White Ale, floral and cloudy, a Dark Ale, rich choc/coffee characters and a Rogers Amber Ale. I'm a big fan of Rogers primarily for its unique combination of heavier flavours and light style, a fact which had me drinking it before I even realised it is a mid strength ale. At 1 standard drink per bottle, it is the perfect BBQ beer (or refreshment for the designated driver).
Once 2.3o rolled around Giant Steps bistro was ready for our lunch booking and we ambled across the car park to the winery.The Giant Steps / Innocent Bystander Winery has an incredible bistro attached. A great cafe bar at the entrance, selling house-made bread and pastries (and their wines of course) introducing a grand dining hall with a great relaxed vibe. Slightly noisy, this only adds to the fun environment.
For me, the draw-card of the bistro is the pizza menu, great, wood-fired pizzas, which even on a Sunday afternoon, with a full room come to the table within 15 minutes.We had a mushroom, a spicy sausage, and I can't remember the name of mine but it had an unctuous spread of sweet, delicious tomato sauce, just thick enough to hold onto the whole anchovies, draped amongst oozing Reggiano. Let me get a Chamois for my keyboard...
We were worried that a pizza each might be too much, well, it was just right. Well, actually it was just right for me but a little much for my wife, at which point I helped her finish.
We drank 2010 Giant Steps Pinot Noir (Sexton Vineyard) and this is classic Yarra Valley Pinot, sour cherry but not too sour, earthy without the undergrowth, dry enough and medium bodied. These Giant steps wines do improve with age and I have tasted their 'Harry's Monster' Cab blend before which, being from what I consider one of Australia's best Cabernet regions, is a total knockout.The Yarra Valley is probably most well known for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and, although I thoroughly agree with its deserving fame for the latter, I think it produces far better Cabernet and Cabernet blends than Pinot. The pinots are undoubtedly drinkable and deserving of recognition, but the Cabernets, from Mount Mary to Punt Road are expressive, delicate, long lived and fascinating.
Anyway, we didn't have any Cabernet, so, whatevs.
From here, we made our way across the valley, Southern Victoria still blessing us with flooding sunlight, up the Melba Hwy towards Yarra Glen, pulling in to the elegant drive of the region's first and arguably most famous Winery, Yering Station.
I have a tradition of always buying a bottle (or two) of something from Yering Station that can't be bought anywhere else. An exciting draw-card for me is that they are forever producing smallish quantities of wines available at cellar door only - small parcels of fruit they are experimenting with and every time I'm there it's something different. An amazing Nebbiolo in 2005, a lovely soft and moreish Sangiovese in 2006, a non-vintage Tawny last year... I was eagerly anticipating today's treat.
We wandered through the garden entrance and under the grand atrium to admire the unique and quite stunning view east over the ranges.
A turn back through some glass doors towards the restaurant reveals windows into the underground cellar, which is cavernous and old-worldly - on past a museum-like display spanning the corridor's wall, of many and varied Yering Station wines through the vintages, and finally, a Methuselah of 1999 Vintage Cabernet Sauvignon (that I would die for).Back through some heavy glass doors and towards the business end; the shop and Cellar Door.
On the tasting menu I immediately notice a 'Pinot Noir Village'. The word Village referencing a style of wine in France which is the kind of 'entry level' local version of whatever the particular appelation happens to be (Cotes Du Rhone Villages, for example, tends to be fruity and easy drinking version of their Grenache, Shiraz, Mourvedre style, generally cheaper and often VERY good). So with this we started.
And it was pretty great. It had more texture and tannin than I was expecting for an $18 Pinot. A strong backbone of acid carrying the not inconsiderable fruit weight to a long and pleasant finish.
This was my wine.
They also had some 'Museum' Chardonnay for tasting, which was in fact the regular Chardonnay in the 2006 vintage, that would've been great and exciting, except that we have a few bottles at home and it seems to be asleep or something. I know that white wines can develop over the short term and then enter a plateau or sleep period, before developping further. Ah, the enigmatic world of wine!
A turn around the shop revealed more treats one can only find in THAT shop; YS RESERVE Pinot Noir (in fact, the estate Pinot can be rather hard to find too) YS Reserve Shiraz Viognier (again, the estate SV is one of the best value reds on the market) and they are still selling that lovely Sangiovese, called MUIR as it comes from that vineyard.
So, my latest purchase of rare elixir from Victoria's first vineyard in the crook of my arm, the sun on our faces (and in our eyes as we head back down the freeway) I am glad that this latest visit to the undulating Yarra Valley has lived up to all its epicurian promises.
D.
________________
On the tasting menu I immediately notice a 'Pinot Noir Village'. The word Village referencing a style of wine in France which is the kind of 'entry level' local version of whatever the particular appelation happens to be (Cotes Du Rhone Villages, for example, tends to be fruity and easy drinking version of their Grenache, Shiraz, Mourvedre style, generally cheaper and often VERY good). So with this we started.
And it was pretty great. It had more texture and tannin than I was expecting for an $18 Pinot. A strong backbone of acid carrying the not inconsiderable fruit weight to a long and pleasant finish.
This was my wine.
They also had some 'Museum' Chardonnay for tasting, which was in fact the regular Chardonnay in the 2006 vintage, that would've been great and exciting, except that we have a few bottles at home and it seems to be asleep or something. I know that white wines can develop over the short term and then enter a plateau or sleep period, before developping further. Ah, the enigmatic world of wine!
A turn around the shop revealed more treats one can only find in THAT shop; YS RESERVE Pinot Noir (in fact, the estate Pinot can be rather hard to find too) YS Reserve Shiraz Viognier (again, the estate SV is one of the best value reds on the market) and they are still selling that lovely Sangiovese, called MUIR as it comes from that vineyard.
So, my latest purchase of rare elixir from Victoria's first vineyard in the crook of my arm, the sun on our faces (and in our eyes as we head back down the freeway) I am glad that this latest visit to the undulating Yarra Valley has lived up to all its epicurian promises.
D.
________________YERING STATION:
38 Melba Hwy Yarra Glen 3775
Victoria, Australia
View on map »
Driving directions »
Phone: +61 3 9730 0100
Fax: +61 3 9739 0135
Email: info@yering.com
Web site: www.yering.com
38 Melba Hwy Yarra Glen 3775
Victoria, Australia
View on map »
Driving directions »
Phone: +61 3 9730 0100
Fax: +61 3 9739 0135
Email: info@yering.com
Web site: www.yering.com
Monday-Friday
10:00am-5:00pm
Weekends & Public Holidays
10:00am-6:00pm
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