Fantastic food, wine, service and location. Happened upon this place on our first visit to the…read moreYarra Valley and were not disappointed by anything. The pizza was among the best we have had. Their Antipasta platter looked amazing as did all the food coming out.

During a recent trip to Australia, we had the pleasure of doing a special tasting with James at…read moreGiant Steps. As a fan of Pinot Noir and liking Chardonnay that is not heavily oaked, I loved all of the wines. We were treated to 3 single-vineyard tastes each of both varietals. We ended up taking back a whole mixed case to California. Thank you, James!

I've been a fan of Giant Steps since they first started making wine over 11 years ago, long before…read morethey created this terrific cellar door experience. These kids are clever. They know how to make delicious wine and have two ranges pitched at slightly different markets - The IB range pitched slightly younger or for what I like to call "Tuesday night drinking" and the Giant Steps which is high end, special drinking and what I like to call "stash it away for later" kind of wine. Each range offers terrific value and you can try both when you visit the cellar door, though the GS tasting will set you back a tasting fee of $10. On top of great wine, these kids know how to cook (pizza, shared-dishes) and know that to keep people happy you should keep them fulfilled with coffee (they roast their own), cheese (the have an amazing selection) and sweet treats (check out their take-home cake and pastry section). It's a massive venue, but don't go assuming you can just rock up unannounced. Giant Steps is hugely popular, particularly on weekends, so do yourself and your hungry family a favour and make a reservation well ahead of arriving.

Yarra Yering offers a unique tasting experience in the Yarrra Valley and should not be overlooked…read moreif you're a wine lover or curios about learning more about wine in general. Techniques on the vineyard are very old world - there is no irrigation and this leads to smaller parcels of fruit that have richer and more complex characteristics that withstand many years (10+) in the bottle and still express terroir. There's a $10 tasting fee per person, but this is well worth it when you consider the quality and the numbers of the wines you are able to taste. It's also waived if you purchase something. You're unlikely to purchase bottle of wine here for under $80, but if you'd like to have a bottle of something special in the future (or can't wait and buy something from the current Museum release for around $115) then you can be sure that this is a good investment. It's rarely crowded here and the serene location make this a more relaxed tasting experience when compared to the choc-full cellar doors int eh rest of the Valley. For that reason alone I'd recommend a visit.

Yarra Yering wines and vineyard certainly has an interesting history. The founder of the vineyard…read moreis the eccentric Dr Carrodus. It is a beautiful vineyard and we were fortunate enough to have the pleasure of visiting just when the whole vineyard had turned a beautiful auburn. The wines were exquisite! For $10 dollars we were able to taste 10 wines, many bottles which were priced at over $100/bottle. The quality of the wines were amazing! Each sampler being better than the next and although each person had their favourite, my personal picks were the 2011 chardonnay and the Dry red no 1 and the 2007 underhill. A must for anyone visiting Yarra valley.

Coldstream Hills has quite the provenance; the connection to James Halliday is well known, but…read morelesser known is the fact that Halliday still has a house on the edge of the Coldstream property, overlooking this proud and well regarded winery. The Coldstream Hills cellar-door has a fantastic tasting "menu" and great special offers. The staff are incredibly knowledgeable not only about the wines, but the history of the estate. They discuss and share, without rushing. Needless to say, on a recent trip I was so impressed by the experience that I bought a few cases, including one of their Reserve Cab-Sav - a personal favourite. They're known for one of the best Australian chardonnays out there, but everything that comes from Coldstream Hills deserves some attention. Fantastic stuff!

This is a small and lovely setting with some really fabulous wines. James Halliday publishes the…read moreannual "bible" of Australian wines, so it's no surprise that his wines are all exceptional. The tasting room sits on a hill with a nice vista. The tasting we did took us from sparkling to sauvignon blanc through the delightful chardonnays, pinot noir, and a surprisingly complex merlot. The staff will take their time and tell you as much as you'd like to hear, or just give you a little information and let you savor the wine at your own pace.

Off the beaten path, past the Sanctuary, down a dirt road and up on a hill is where you will find…read morethe Badge Creek Blueberry Farm. As we parked I thought, "okay, so there's only one other car here." Stepping in I was thinking to myself "uhhhh..." I really had no idea what to expect. Going to a blueberry farm, when it's not even blueberry season, what do you do here? Smart thinking right? But, I was reassured of my decision when we were immediately helped to try out some of the different beverages that they have. We tried the St. Ronan's Ciders: apple and pear. They also have another apple cider on tap. As I was trying these out, my eyes lingered upon the wall behind the counter, and I saw that they also offered a range of blueberry wines. How could I possibly come to a blueberry farm and not try out their blueberry drinks? After tasting the wine, sparkling and fortified, we chose a glass each of the blueberry wine. It's home grown and hand made, you are actually parking right beside the farm. Now the blueberry wine...first off, BLUEBERRY WINE! How cool is that? Not only does it smell just like blueberry pancakes, but it tastes like smashed blueberries, and takes you straight to blueberry heaven. It's very light, and it could be drank like a white wine, or you could make sangria with it. I've had other fruit wines before, but I had never tried blueberry, until now. And seriously, it rocked my world. Accompanied with a blackberry coconut cake and a side of ice cream, we sat down by the fireplace. It was...perfect. Tucked away from the busyness of Healesville on a weekend, this place is away from the crowds, so that you can recollect yourself to sanity. It's quiet, chill, and trendy with jazzy music. On a winter's day, with a cozy warm fireplace, wide windows to take in the views, and a glass of wine, how could it can get any better? They also have a good range of homemade jams and toppings. But my only regret is not taking home a bottle of their delicious tasty wine! I've been raving about it ever since! The blueberry wine, I just can't get it off my mind!

Gorgeous winery with beautiful cellar door and views. We we're lucky to come on a quiet weekday and…read morethe winemaker was peeing samples and chatting with patrons about his winemaking process and the vineyards. A great winery to enjoy while in the area!

We had an incredible time here. The views were phenomenal and the wine was even better. This winery…read moreis on par with some of the Napa Valley wineries that we've visited. This winery is a smaller winery. However, you won't regret the decision to come out here for the day. It's easy to see why they are Australia's top winery

St. Hubert's Vineyard was a really modern and pretty area. We were surprised to have the place to…read moreourselves. It is a very clean and fine dining vibe in the Cellar Door and the wine was good as is most wine in this region. Definitely a pretty spot but it was not the best to walk around the grass in the rain though.

Recently had the pleasure of visiting this absolutely beautiful vineyard on a visit from the USA…read more We first ate in the restaurant. Self serve water and sparkling water on tap. Love that. The food was excellent and the prices were very on base with such a nice place. I shared a pizza and some potato wedges. Both were delicious. We then went to the wine sample room. Had a flight of a few different reds. Our wine guide was very knowledgeable and answered all our questions. I was told they do weddings here. Would be such a beautiful and epic setting for that.

What an amazing place with even more amazing people. We were in the Melbourne area in November…read more2011 and wanted to check out a winery, and this one happened to be on our route and, even better, promised some interesting fruit wines. It ended up being one of the most memorable stops on our 3 week vacation. The couple who runs the place could not have been more welcoming or more fun. While they offer grape wines like Chardonnay and Shiraz, I was most interested in trying their kiwi wines. They offer sweet, semi-sweet and dry. I loved all three, but the sweet kept most of the unique kiwi taste. Their strawberry wine was also amazing. When he saw our enthusiasm, our host was only too happy to tell us all about his business, and even to sample one of his secrets to great wine, the water from his spring. We all bought the maximum amount of wine we could bring back to the US, focusing on the strawberry and kiwi. After some visiting and prodding from his delightful wife, our host also let us each try a sip of his raspberry wine. He was completely sold out but had a small personal supply. Let me tell you... ambrosia. It was magic on the tongue. I am watching their website carefully from now on to see if there is any to ship! Whatever it costs to send it to the US, it will be worth it! Our hosts were gracious enough to let us walk the property and take some pictures as well. It was absolutely beautiful. I hope to return someday but until then, this will be one of my most cherished memories of Australia!

A French winery in the Yarra Valley, complete with accent-clad staff, a nice variety of wine and…read morefull lunch menu. The winery is petite especially on a busy weekend, so you will be snuggled up at the tasting bar or browsing their cute gift shop. With limited seating indoors and outside, it's intimate so groups need to book ahead. There is a cosy and rustic feel, family owned. The wines are good but can easily jump to pricey selections. The food was phenomenal. I was impressed with the menu and everyone from my dining party enjoyed their dishes, from lamb roast, pork belly salad and beef ribs. Even the French fries were good, as they should be! Excellent portion sizes. It's a beautiful stop on a sunny, summer day and a break from the bigger wineries. You will enjoy their personal touch and ambiance.

Lovely winery in a beautiful setting. The wine maker is 10th generation (French heritage) and their…read morewines are very nice, although only a small selection is available to taste. The lady who took us through the wine tasting and 'cellar tour' was very knowledgable and gave us plenty of tips on how to actually TASTE our wine properly. There is also a cafe for a small bite to eat or a coffee to perk you up during your winery tour.

I made a stop at Oakridge Wines for a glass of wine whilst cycling. Carrie was super friendly and…read moreknowledgeable. She picked the perfect glass for my taste preference! And checkout the view in my photo!

Oakridge was our first stop in the Yarra Valley and we are certainly glad it was. We booked the…read moretasting in advance but it looked like they had some available for walk ins as well. The scenery is beautiful and the wine is even better, so great that we bought a couple bottles to fly back to the US with... and when we got home, it was confirmed that we still loved this wine!