Swinging Bridge Wines, OrangeCredit: Destination NSW
Sunset at Swinging Bridge Wines, Orange.
#lovensw #newsouthwales
The scenic town of Orange, a 3.5-hour drive west of Sydney, offers visitors the opportunity to connect with the countryside and indulge in a renowned food and wine hub. Mount Canobolas, an extinct volcano sitting 1,390m above sea level, is responsible for the rich volcanic soils that result in world-class wines and exceptional produce. There is also plenty history, culture and adventure to seek out.
Where to wine and dine
Held each April, Orange F.O.O.D Week celebrates local producers and vignerons. This 10-day event is Australia’s longest-running regional food festival and showcases all of the people and places that make this inland city so inspiring. Catch it if you can.
For special occasions, book in at Lolli Redini, where fine contemporary Italian and French cuisine is matched by excellent service and great attention to detail.
Tonic, located just 15 minutes from Orange in the historic village of Millthorpe, offers a fine dining experience where local ingredients such as Mandagery Creek venison and Cowra lamb star on the innovative menu.
For delicious food with served with stunning views, make your way to Sister’s Rock Restaurant, located at the top of Borrodell Estate. Dishes feature produce grown on site, including cherries, black truffles, quince and heritage apples and plums.
An innovative food and wine hub, The Agrestic Grocer champions local producers by serving up hearty fare in the restaurant and selling many of the ingredients in the attached grocery. Adding to the experience, the cellar doors for both Badlands Brewery and Pig in the House organic wines are also located here.
Sitting at one of the highest points in Orange, Philip Shaw Wines is home to the expansive Koomooloo vineyard, planted back in 1989. The property’s popular cellar door is housed in a 130-year-old barn — head here to sample fine wine or book a picnic in the garden and enjoy a pre-packed hamper, where locally sourced food items and seasonal produce is paired with a bottle of Philip Shaw Character Series wine.
Featuring hints of honeydew melon and pear, See Saw’s Organic Prosecco 2020 is Australia’s only certified organic prosecco. It’s also a perfect example of the low-impact, sustainable techniques put into practice by winery owners Justin and Pip Jarrett, who have been making cool-climate wines in Orange for over 25 years. A cellar door is at the planning stage, but tours and special events are regularly available.
Highlight selects of the Orange wine region Credit: Destination NSW
Orange is the perfect location to indulge in NSW food and wine.
#lovensw #newsouthwales
Highlight selects of the Orange wine region Credit: Destination NSW
Orange is the perfect location to indulge in NSW food and wine.
Borrodell Vineyard, Canobolas Credit: Destination NSW
Sister’s Rock Restaurant, Borrodell Vineyard, Canobolas.
#lovensw #newsouthwales
Borrodell Vineyard, Canobolas Credit: Destination NSW
Sister’s Rock Restaurant, Borrodell Vineyard, Canobolas.
Streetscape, Orange. Credit: Destination NSW
Street view of the Orange Post Office in the State's Central NSW region.
#lovensw #newsouthwales
Streetscape, Orange. Credit: Destination NSW
Street view of the Orange Post Office in the State's Central NSW region.
Where to find adventure
A self-guided walk on the Orange Heritage Trail is a great way to get beneath the skin of this fascinating town. Highlighting some of Orange’s finest buildings, the walk starts from the Orange Visitor Information Centre on Byng Street and takes around 1.5 hours. Along the way you will learn about the Traditional Custodians of this region — the Wiradjuri people — as well as the early landowners, gold miners and commercial traders that contributed to the town’s early settlement history.
Keen to brush up on your culinary skills? Then book in for a comprehensive lesson at Barrel & Larder, the purpose-built food and wine school at Ross Hill Wines. Look on and learning as your teacher prepares a selection of dishes before enjoying a shared meal matched with Ross Hill’s fine wines.
Just a five-minute drive from the centre of Orange, Swinging Bridge specialises in premium wines that reflect their regional provenance. The winery also offers the ultimate ‘Sydney-Orange Helicopter Experience’ — after flying across western Sydney and over the spectacular Blue Mountains, you’ll arrive at the vineyard. You’ll then take a tour with winemaker Tom Ward before savouring a four-course gourmet lunch at the renowned Charred Kitchen & Bar. Simply gather five of your best friends and book well in advance.
Where to stay
Set in Orange’s heritage precinct, The Byng Street Boutique Hotel combines the history of an original homestead with contemporary architecture. There are 22 beautifully appointed rooms and breakfast is served in the stylish Yallungah Dining Room.
With 25 luxurious self-contained rooms, de Russie Boutique Hotel is ideal for travellers who want to be close to the heart of Orange. As an extra treat, book one of the Studio Spa Suites and let your stress melt away in the bubbling spa bath.
Escape into nature with a winery stay. Rowlee Wines offers the ‘Ultimate Wine Escape’, a two-night package that combines luxury accommodation in the private guesthouse with a tutored tasting session, where food is paired with matching cheeses and chocolates.
Rowlee Wines, Nashdale Credit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying a scenic walk through the vineyards at Rowlee Wines, Nashdale.
#lovensw #newsouthwales
Rowlee Wines, Nashdale Credit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying a scenic walk through the vineyards at Rowlee Wines, Nashdale.
Tonic Restaurant, Millthorpe Credit: Destination NSW
Dessert being prepared at Tonic Restaurant, Millthorpe.
#lovensw #newsouthwales
Tonic Restaurant, Millthorpe Credit: Destination NSW
Dessert being prepared at Tonic Restaurant, Millthorpe.
More Inspirational Stories
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, CorowaCredit: Destination NSW
Couple enjoying a visit to Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, Corowa.
#feelnsw #newsouthwales
Feast on the riches of one of Australia’s most important food bowls on a road trip through the Murray, named after the mighty river that flows through this southwest area of New South Wales. Float down the river on a historic paddlesteamer wine cruise, stop by farm gates to sample incredible fresh produce, and dine at chic restaurants and bars in this unique culinary playground.
Take the back roads for gourmet treats
Head off the beaten path along The Backroads Trail, a 250km driving route that passes through the small pastoral towns of Barham, Moama, Mathoura and Deniliquin on the upper reaches of the Murray River. Sink your teeth into fresh olives, avocados, free-range pork, honey and citrus fruit from farm gates along its loops and trails, and taste the region’s wines at vineyards such as Restdown Wines. While you’re at this winery, venture out along the Restdown Wetland Walk to encounter Aboriginal cooking hearths and an old sheep camp.
Cruise along to The Old School Winery & Meadery in Womboota to pick up wine, pottery and honey mead. Or seek out Ivy Joyce in Barham to indulge in a warm space, offering local produce from farms for a truly paddock to plate experience in the heart of Murray River country. For more snacks and meaty fare such as British-style pork pies and sausages, head to Pacdon Park’s factory shop in Moama.
You can work up an appetite as you build your own itinerary on the theme of food, paddocks and produce, and find suggested routes and maps to Murray River farm gates, at the Echuca Moama Visitor Centre.
Wine and dine along the river
Embark on a wine tour by water in Moama, where the first steamboats made their way up the Murray in 1853. Take a Murray River Paddlesteamers Wharf to Winery Cruise from the town to Morrisons Riverview Winery for a leisurely lunch. Or drive along the river, stopping in at Three Black Sheep for risotto and woodfired pizzas, and tasting crisp dry whites and full-flavoured reds at St Anne’s Vineyards, where you can nibble on a cheese platter overlooking a scenic lake.
Head east along the riverside roads to rest and recharge in the town of Tocumwal, known for its riverside beaches, golf courses, glider flying and iconic Big Murray Cod statue. Start the following day with a solid foundation of breakfast pizza (topped with bacon, eggs and a hash brown) at The Old Bank and indulge in a scoop of ice-cream or sorbet from Tocumwal Ice Creamery – flavours include rocky road, green apple or macadamia. If you’re in town on a Saturday, pick up honey, fruit, vegetables, olive oil, dressings and other condiments made by local producers at the Tocumwal Foreshore Markets.
Continue your odyssey along the river to Corowa, the birthplace of Australian Federation. Immerse in the town’s rich turn-of-the-20th-century colonial heritage as you make your way to the former 1920s flour mill housing Corowa Distilling Co. Here you can book a whisky tasting and behind-the-scenes tour and buy locally made chocolates and sweets from sister shop Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory. Work off an indulgent afternoon with a walk along the river before settling into the stylish Circa 1936 hotel, which is housed in an Art Deco former bank on the main street of Corowa.
Celebrate regional ingredients in Albury
From Corowa, follow the Riverina Highway eastward to the city of Albury, a food, wine and culture hub. Taste how seasonality and locality are expressed at The Proprietor, a former butcher shop turned cafe offering brunch treats such as fruit toast with Beechworth honey and whipped ricotta, and banana waffles with Gundowring vanilla ice-cream. Or try the all-day breakfast offering at Mr Benedict, from cheesy bacon waffle with popcorn chicken to one of its signature eggs benedicts, including one with cider-braised ham hock.
At The River Deck restaurant, local ingredients are celebrated alongside stunning river views, and dishes may include chicken Caesar salad with Milawa eggs or beef brisket braised in coffee by Albury roaster The Brothers Cup. At tiny and elegant Bistro Selle, complement warm Gooramadda olives with a buttery Australian chardonnay and fresh market fish. Yardbird offers a bold-flavoured menu featuring dishes like scorched Albacore tuna, along with meats grilled in a Spanish woodfired oven.
In between meals, stroll along the Yindyamarra Sculpture Walk and take in the contemporary artworks by Aboriginal artists that line the Wagirra Trail. Meander through the Murray Art Museum Albury’s contemporary photographic collection, Aboriginal art and works by renowned Australian artist Sir Russell Drysdale. Afterwards, order lunch or dinner at the museum’s excellent Canvas Eatery – try the saltbush lamb rump or one of their Neapolitan-style pizzas.
The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota Credit: Destination NSW
Couple taste tasting mead at The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota
#feelnsw #newsouthwales
The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota Credit: Destination NSW
Couple taste tasting mead at The Old School Winery & Meadery, Womboota
Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available from Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama.
#feelnsw #newsouthwales
Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available from Morrison's Riverview Winery and Restaurant, Moama.
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, Corowa Credit: Destination NSW
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate located in a 1920âs old flour mill in Corowa.
#feelnsw #newsouthwales
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate, Corowa Credit: Destination NSW
Corowa Whisky & Chocolate located in a 1920âs old flour mill in Corowa.
Canvas Eatery, Albury Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available at Canvas Eatery in Albury.
#feelnsw #newsouthwales
Canvas Eatery, Albury Credit: Destination NSW
Food and wine available at Canvas Eatery in Albury.