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16 Melbourne distilleries you need on your radar

Melbourne’s craft spirits industry is booming and these are the key distilleries driving the rapid growth.

When you think of an iconic distillery in Melbourne the names Four Pillars and Starward usually come up first. Yet, as you’ll see below, there is so much scope for Melbourne’s craft spirits that you could easily thread in a distillery crawl when you want an alternative to the city’s best pubs and cafes.

If there’s anything that distinguishes Melbourne’s best restaurants, it’s the keen understanding that produce consumed as close to the source as possible results in a superior dining experience. The same logic applies to spirits; the closer you are to the source, the better.

This is why sitting down at a Melbourne distillery and working your way through the state’s best craft spirits is always worth your time. You don’t have to venture far to find a top-quality gin distillery in Melbourne, or a great whisky distillery.

Below, you’ll find 16 of the city’s best and also a few regional gems worth travelling for. Whether you’re gathering a few mates for a whisky tasting or taking a date on a gin-making class, these spots will have you praising the state’s boundless creativity.

1. Starward, Port Melbourne

a look inside the bar and distillery at Starward, Port Melbourne
Experience Melbourne’s booming whisky scene at Starward. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Best for: Award-winning whisky and an insightful distillery tour

Starward is the most awarded whisky distillery in Melbourne and a pioneer in Australia’s booming whisky scene. Starward is most likely the first stop for any fans of the brown stuff.

Since 2007, this stalwart distillery has been producing mostly young, intensely drinkable whiskies with a preference for those sweeter flavours garnered from sherry, red wine and bourbon casks. The ginger beer cask series has especially been drawing heavy praise for the distillery these past few years, but almost every time we visit, there’s something new and exciting to distract us from the signatures.

Melbourne’s temperamental climate means whiskies tend to absorb oaky flavours much faster than they would in other regions, giving Starward plenty to play around with as the team experiments with local ingredients for expressions like Nova and the highly acclaimed Two Fold.

Book ahead for a behind-the-scenes tour where all stages of the whisky production process are detailed before you dive into a whisky tasting with two 15ml pours. If you’re lucky, you’ll even get to taste two unreleased whiskies straight from the barrel.

Address: 50 Bertie St, Port Melbourne

2. Little Lon Distilling Co., CBD

Patrons sit outside at Little Lon Distillery in Melbourne
Little Lon Distilling Co. is set within a charming heritage building in the CBD.

Best for: A charming heritage bar set and experimental craft gin

Little Lon Distilling Co. lucked out when the team scored this charming heritage-listed brick building just a stone’s throw from the State Library. The cottage houses one of the best gin distilleries in Australia, proudly intimate – there are only 20 seats in the tasting room – and always busy.

Little Lon’s awarded gins are also placards for the area’s sketchy past, each inspired by a notorious individual who once roamed the nearby streets. For example, the lychee-flavoured Little Miss Yoko is named for a sex worker who lived in the cottage in the early 1900s. Little Lon’s unique gin-making class doubles as a Melbourne history lesson, and we’ve picked up more than a few secrets about the city from visiting over the years.

Address: 17 Casselden Pl, Melbourne

3. Bathtub Gin Co., Williamstown

a stack of wine barrels at Bathtub Gin Co., Williamstown
Brave a tasting of the navy-strength, barrel-aged Mighty Apollo. (Image: Colleen Mahoney)

Best for: Unique gins and excellent pizza

Though named for the older way of distilling, Bathtub Gin Co. is anything but basic. This popular micro-distillery in Brunswick is home to some of the best small-batch gin in Melbourne, which is saying a lot given the state’s eternal love of all things botanical.

A great range of flavours sits behind this experimental bayside distillery, which makes the most of local Victorian produce and caters to a broad scope of tastes. The interesting cherry-infused Best Day Ever gin makes a unique G&T, while the hardy, barrel-aged Mighty Apollo, with a solid 60 per cent ABV, is our go-to whenever we’re in the mood for a classic navy strength.

Take a seat at the bar and order some classic pizza or a charcuterie board to go with your gin tasting. It’s one of the most popular things to do in Brunswick for good reason.

Address: 25 Aitken St, Williamstown

4. Dukes Distillery, South Wharf

the Dukes Distillery in South Wharf
Step inside the cellar door of Dukes Distillery for a cocktail-tasting flight.

Best for: Craft gin with big, unique flavours

Re-shaping a former motorbike workshop in South Wharf, Duke’s Distillery is one of Melbourne’s most adventurous – a comprehensive offering that includes a towering 500-bottle wine wall for anyone not in the mood for spirits.

After years of working with grapes, the small team of winemakers behind this cellar door pivoted towards small batch spirits and liqueurs. The focus on flavour has certainly carried over with unique offerings like oyster shell gin, and pineapple coconut vodka.

The cocktail-tasting flight will take you through the range, best paired with the kitchen’s specialties like chicken katsu udon and slow-cooked lamb shank.

Address: 25 Dukes Walk, South Wharf

5. Cedar Fox Distilling Co., Coburg North

the bar at Cedar Fox Distilling Co., Coburg North
Pull up a chair at the bar and settle in for a tasting flight. (Image: Kate Arnott)

Best for: Its stylish green onyx bar with classic gin cocktails

You’ll find Cedar Fox Distilling Co. near the station in Coburg North, inside a gutted former warehouse with a slick green onyx bar and all the tools to produce top-shelf small-batch gin. Although we’ve made the mistake of showing up during the winter months; it’s a seasonal distillery so only pops open when Melbourne’s weather is much more tolerable.

The label is a favourite amongst Melbourne’s best bars, pumping out pleasant, adaptable gins that work perfectly in martinis. We reckon the martini flight is the best way to go, offering three mini martinis that change regularly based on what’s popular that week.

In terms of food, you’re getting standard distillery fare at Cedar Fox. Indulge in all the cheese, charcuterie and olives you could ask for. And if you’ve had your fill of gin, there’s always a list of local beers.

Address: 11 Mantell St, Coburg North

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6. Reed & Co, Bright

a bottle of gin at Reed & Co, Bright
The gin at Reed & Co is worth the drive to Bright. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Best for: Produce-forward craft gin with native ingredients

When chef Hamish Nugent moved on from Tani Eat & Drink in 2016, he used his culinary skills to spearhead a new regional distillery out in the Victorian town of Bright and start playing around with the ever-adaptable profile of gin.

Nugent’s background comes in great use for Reed & Co, mashing up botanicals for unique gins like the flagship Remedy Gin, which has notes of eucalyptus, pine and mountain pepper.

When he isn’t foraging, Nugent is leaning on local farmers to supply ingredients like apples and green tea, all of which are used to create these interesting botanical profiles that keep Reed & Co. front and centre in discussions on the best Melbourne gins.

Given the range is so wildly diverse, a gin-tasting flight is the only way to do Reed & Co Distillery justice, offering samples of some of Nugent’s latest and greatest before as well as your own bottle to take home.

Address: 555 Bourke St, Melbourne

7. Brunswick Aces, Brunswick

a specialty gin at Brunswick Aces, Brunswick
The non-alcoholic bar and distillery prides itself on expertly curated gins. (Image: Supplied)

Best for: A pioneering zero-alcohol range with rich flavours

At the head of the zero-alcohol movement is Brunswick Aces, one of Australia’s most modern gin distilleries and a muse for local bartenders. Stroll inside and you’ll see the full range of the distillery’s innovative products, including the latest from other no-alcohol labels like Non and Heaps Normal.

Set in a nondescript warehouse neighbouring popular Temple Brewing, this Melbourne distillery makes full use of its unique stills, which co-founders Stephen Lawrence and Cameron Hunt have placed behind a big glass window. Guests can watch the magic happen at any time.

The team’s unique process leads to intensely flavourful distillates that mix well in classic cocktails like the coconut and cucumber-accented King Louis, using the label’s signature Hearts Sapiir and its notes of wattleseed and citrus.

Address: 124 Weston St, Brunswick East

8. Patient Wolf Distilling Co., Southbank

sample gins at Patient Wolf Distilling Co., Southbank
Patient Wolf Distilling Co. produces perennial award-winners like the classic Melbourne Dry Gin and the Rouge Barrel. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Best for: A two-hour bottomless gin tasting

Having outgrown its original location in Brunswick a few years ago, Patient Wolf Distilling Co. has ramped up production in Southbank and shot forward as one of the most anticipated craft gin labels in Australia.

Now shaped into a converted red-brick warehouse, the Patient Wolf team have much more capacity to pound out those perennial award-winners like the classic Melbourne Dry Gin and the Rouge Barrel, the latter of which gets its flavour from French oak barrels.

Park yourself at the head-turning brass-topped bar for an excellent cocktail menu covered in classics with a few surprises. If you’re feeling extra leisurely, tap into Patient Wolf’s two-hour bottomless gin package: a full 120 minutes of unlimited G&Ts, spritzes (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) and a healthy selection of charcuterie and antipasto, as well as a guided gin tasting. It’s the best way to play at this popular Southbank distillery.

Address: 34-36 Market St, Southbank

9. Saint Felix, Mordialloc

Saint Felix at Urban Ground in Mordialloc.
Find Saint Felix at Urban Ground within a converted car-wrecking site out in Mordialloc. (Image: Dean Schmideg)

Best for: Its bold range of signature brandies and interesting cocktails

Urban Ground, a converted car-wrecking site out in Mordialloc, is a great representation of Melbourne’s creative hospitality scene. Not only is this sprawling setting home to a vibrant food truck park, but the grounds also host a health food cafe and Saint Felix, a fruit-obsessed distillery specialising in brandy.

Distiller Xavier Nalty, who co-founded Urban Ground with Robert de Santis, leads production with the help of an 18th-century Portuguese copper still and a love of bold flavours.

The signature and most popular brandy is anchored by the super strong flavours of cacao and cherry, but Nalty keeps a broad range with a number of full-flavoured gins and one very unique yuzu and sencha green tea spirit.

The small bar offers tastings and food pairings, so anyone looking for unique spirits should skip the food trucks entirely and head straight to this hidden gem.

Address: 1 Lamana Rd, Mordialloc

10. Naught Distilling, Eltham

Inside Naughty Distilling
The still is in full view of the tasting area at Naught Distilling. (Image: Jana Langhorst)

Best for:  A sophisticated gin tasting of award-winning expressions

Founder and head distiller Chris Cameron has brought plenty of well-deserved awards over to Naught Distilling and its exceptional inner-city cocktail bar. While Melbourne has more than its fair share of gin distilleries refining classics and forming their own identity, there’s something about Naught that has made it one of the city’s brightest stars.

The distinction comes from sophistication, a more immersive atmosphere that hits as soon as you enter the Eltham operation where handsomely dressed staff and table service shift away from the typical bar-in-a-distillery experience and towards something a bit more exclusive.

Eyeing off that powerful German-made copper still while working your way through Naught’s classics and snacking on some charcuterie and tinned seafood: bliss. Order up a gin-tasting flight; if you’re lucky, it’ll include the immensely popular Sangiovese Gin made with full-flavoured Yarra Valley grapes.

Address: 2/32 Peel St, Eltham

11. Anther Gin, Geelong

squeezing lemon into a drink at Anther Gin, Geelong
Fresh flavours are infused into each drink. (Image: Anther Gin)

Best for: Classic gin cocktails and fresh Australian flavours

Head to Geelong and park yourself at the gorgeous, red-bricked warehouse that hosts the modest Anther Gin. Founded by Dervilla McGowan and Sebastian Reaburn in 2016, the small-batch gin label is serious about fresh botanicals and native Australian plants, taking the classic approach with highly localised flavours.

The juniper-loving signature Anther Gin is loaded with fresh pops of eucalyptus, lemon gum and finger limes – brilliant for a headstrong G&T. But the entire range is worth working your way through; grab a tasting board of three different expressions matched with tonics and botanicals.

Better yet, a three-course “meal" of Anther’s signature serves will hit all the right spots for lovers of time-honoured gins.

Address: 33 Mackey St, North Geelong

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12. Four Pillars Gin, Healesville

a look inside Four Pillars Gin, Healesville
Four Pillars has cemented itself as the nation’s most renowned gin distillery. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Best for: The quintessential gin-making experience in regional Victoria

Four Pillars is now the most renowned gin distillery in Australia, having scored multiple awards since Matt Jones, Stuart Gregor and Cameron Mackenzie powered up the stills in 2013.

The carbon-neutral Healesville distillery produces over a million bottles of Four Pillars gin per year. There’s barely a bar in Australia that doesn’t at least have the core range on offer, including signatures like the classic London Dry Gin, the hugely popular Bloody Shiraz Gin and seasonal releases like the Four Seasons Christmas Gin.

Surrounded by the Yarra Valley, this legendary cellar door is like Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory for gin enthusiasts. Hang out in the sprawling gin garden or one of several bars with a gin flight in front of you. Better yet, take a gin masterclass at the cellar door so you can focus on each of the key ingredients, from Tasmanian pepperberry and Lemon myrtle to classic juniper. You’ll be an expert in no time.

Address: 2A Lilydale Rd, Healesville

13. Loch Brewery & Distillery, Loch

the exterior of Loch Brewery & Distillery, Loch
Loch is home to one of Melbourne’s finest breweries and distilleries specialising in botanicals. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Best for: A great range of beers, gins and single malt whiskies to appeal to all tastes

The organic growth for Loch Brewery & Distillery has remained steady since co-founders Craig Johnsson and Melinda Davies started ageing single malt whiskies back in the early 2000s. While waiting for the whisky to mature, the duo started brewing beer as per old English recipes, favouring those deep, dark stouts and natural ales to balance things out for a growing clientele.

Eventually, grape-based gins became the bread and butter for this distillery out in the regional Victorian town of Loch. Much like the beer, there was a preference for classics like London dry gin and a signature, The Weaver, with five hyperlocal botanicals.

The diversity paid off. Loch’s whiskies constantly sell out. Those gins are stocked on the top shelf of some of the best bars in Melbourne, and are always in such high demand. The diversity means that no tasting paddle is the same whenever we head on back, and that’s why we love heading on out here on a sunny weekend.

Address: 42/44 Victoria Rd, Loch

14. Animus Distillery, Kyneton

a woman mixing drinks at Animus Distillery, Kyneton
Animus Distillery produces top-quality gin using a gravity-fed carbon filter system. (Image: Visit Victoria)

Best for:  An off-the-beaten-track road trip and unique range of gins

You’ll find the highly underrated Animus Distillery’s cellar door on the historic strip of Piper Street in Kyneton, which is just over a one-hour drive from Melbourne CBD. You’re in luck if you find those old-world Chesterfield couches empty; this distillery can get very busy with its vibrant cocktail bar and signature tasting flights featuring vapour-pressed gin.

What started as a garage project in Fitzroy North is now very much the heart and soul of the Kyneton community. Since 2015, the Animus team has been producing top-quality gin using a gravity-fed carbon filter system and a broad spectrum of Australian and overseas ingredients.

While there are many gin labels in Victoria, the distinction here comes from those more vegetative and herbaceous notes. Our favourite example is the signature Arboretum gin with its infusion of strawberry gum leaf, lemon thyme, rosemary, oranges and bush tomato.

Address: 1/89A Piper St, Kyneton

15. Westside Ale Works, South Melbourne

gin bottles at Westside Ale Works, South Melbourne
Sample the full scope of spirits on offer at Westside Ale Works.

Best for: A mixed crowd of beer and spirit lovers, plus a stack of board games

As both a brewery and distillery, Westside Ale Works in South Melbourne is widely known for bold American-style IPAs nodding to a SoCal influence. But there’s also a great range of four-grain whiskies, dark rum and gin.

The broad scope means you’ll find a very mixed crowd in this converted warehouse, posted at the very relaxed, uncomplicated bar. A great mix of table and board games are spread across the space, while 30 taps take care of the beer drinkers and a tight list of cocktails showcases the diverse range of spirits.

Address: 36 Alfred St, South Melbourne

16. Brogan’s Way Distillery

a gin sample at Brogan’s Way Distillery, Melbourne
Brogan’s Way Distillery takes on a zero-waste approach to distilling.

Set dramatically in a former automotive warehouse, this Richmond distillery opened in 2018 with Brogan’s Way quickly establishing itself as a beacon for the local community. It was, and still is, a bottomless pit of creativity with a range of gins, vodkas, whiskies and bottled cocktails.

We love the bottled limoncello with its well-rounded zest, and I’m not sure you could keep anyone away from a coffee negroni. Either go well with one of the kitchen’s cheese and charcuterie boards, but most come through for the spirits and cocktail masterclasses. These are some of the best in Melbourne, offering great insights into how Brogan’s Way does things differently and why having a circular, zero-waste approach to distilling is the smartest way to go.

If you want to zone in on just one spirit, we suggest the highly textural Royal Blood Gin, a navy strength number that could stand toe-to-toe with similar products from Four Pillars and Little Lon Distilling Co.

In early 2025, Brogan’s Way also became the first distillery to collaborate with the University of Melbourne to assist in the ongoing research into Indigenous botanicals to help lift the Australian craft scene onto the global stage.

Address: 61 North St, Richmond

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Chris Singh
Chris Singh is an arts, travel and food journalist with 17 years of experience in digital media and 4 years of experience in SEO writing. He is the former travel editor of premium men's lifestyle title Boss Hunting and currently balances his role as Deputy Editor-At-Large of the AU review with freelance travel writing gigs at Australian Traveller, Luxury Escapes, Cruise & Travel and Sydney Travel Guide. Chris holds a Bachelor of Arts & Sciences (Sociology and Psychology) from the University of Sydney and once worked as a line dancer for steakhouse chain Lone Star (no, seriously). He's always got his finger on the pulse for good live music and delicious new restaurants, has a particular love of historic hotels and is starting to see the restorative value of the ever-present wellness industry. Although he is a born-and-bred Sydneysider, his favourite Australian cities are Hobart and Adelaide. Internationally, he can never get enough of big cities like Tokyo, New York and Chicago. If you're looking for him, he's either at a concert, on a plane or behind a laptop.
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The Macedon Ranges is Victoria’s best-kept food and wine secret

    Emily McAuliffe Emily McAuliffe
    Located just an hour north-west of Melbourne, the largely undiscovered Macedon Ranges quietly pours some of Australia’s finest cool-climate wines and serves up some of Victoria’s best food.

    Mention the Macedon Ranges and most people will think of day spas and mineral springs around Daylesford, cosy weekends away in the countryside or the famous Hanging Rock (of enigmatic picnic fame). Or they won’t have heard of the Macedon Ranges at all.

    But this cool-climate destination has been inconspicuously building a profile as a high-quality food and wine region and is beginning to draw serious attention from oenophiles and epicureans alike.

    The rise of Macedon Ranges wine

    liquid gold barrels at Kyneton Ridge Estate Winery
    Barrels of liquid gold at Kyneton Ridge Estate Winery. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    With elevations ranging from 300 to 800 metres, Macedon Ranges vineyards are among the highest in the country. This altitude, combined with significant day/night temperature swings, makes for a slow ripening season, in turn nurturing wines that embody elegance and structure. Think crisp chardonnays, subtle yet complex pinot noirs and delicate sparkling wines, along with niche varietals, such as gamay and nebbiolo.

    Despite the region’s natural advantages – which vary from estate to estate, as each site embodies unique terroir depending on its position in relation to the Great Dividing Range, soil make-up and altitude – the Macedon Ranges has remained something of an insider’s secret. Unlike Victoria’s Yarra Valley or Mornington Peninsula, you won’t find large tour buses here and there’s no mass marketing drawing crowds.

    Many of the 40-odd wineries are family-run operations with modest yields, meaning the wineries maintain a personal touch (if you visit a cellar door, you’ll likely chat to the owner or winemaker themselves) and a tight sales circle that often doesn’t go far beyond said cellar door. And that’s part of the charm.

    Though wines from the Macedon Ranges are just starting to gain more widespread recognition in Australia, the first vines were planted in the 1860s, with a handful of operators then setting up business in the 1970s and ’80s. The industry surged again in the 1990s and early 2000s with the entry of wineries, such as Mount Towrong, which has an Italian slant in both its wine and food offering, and Curly Flat, now one of the largest estates.

    Meet the new generation of local winemakers

    the Clydesdale barn at Paramoor.
    The Clydesdale barn at Paramoor. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Then, within the last 15 years, a new crop of vignerons like Andrew Wood at Kyneton Ridge Estate, whose vineyard in 2024 was the first in the Macedon Ranges to be certified by Sustainable Winegrowing Australia; Geoff Plahn and Samantha Reid at Paramoor, who have an impressive cellar door with a roaring fire and studded leather couches in an old Clydesdale barn; and Ollie Rapson and Renata Morello at Lyons Will, who rapidly expanded a small vineyard to focus on top-shelf riesling, gamay, pinot noir and chardonnay, have taken ownership of local estates.

    Going back to the early days, Llew Knight’s family was one of the pioneers of the 1970s, replacing sheep with vines at Granite Hills when the wool industry dwindled. Knight is proud of the fact that all their wines are made with grapes from their estate, including a light, peppery shiraz (some Macedon wineries purchase fruit from nearby warmer areas, such as Heathcote, particularly to make shiraz) and a European-style grüner veltliner. And, as many other wineries in the region do, he relies on natural acid for balance, rather than an additive, which is often required in warmer regions. “It’s all about understanding and respecting your climate to get the best out of your wines,” he says.

    farm animals atKyneton Ridge Estate
    Curious residents at Kyneton Ridge Estate. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Throughout the Macedon Ranges, there’s a growing focus on sustainability and natural and low-intervention wines, with producers, such as Brian Martin at Hunter Gatherer making waves in regenerative viticulture. Martin previously worked in senior roles at Australia’s largest sparkling winemaking facility, and now applies that expertise and his own nous to natural, hands‑off, wild-fermented wines, including pét‑nat, riesling and pinot noir. “Wild fermentation brings more complexity,” he says. “Instead of introducing one species of yeast, you can have thousands and they add different characteristics to the wine.”

    the vineyard at Kyneton Ridge Estate Winery
    The estate’s vineyard, where cool-climate grapes are grown. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Most producers also focus on nurturing their grapes in-field and prune and pick by hand, thus avoiding the introduction of impurities and the need to meddle too much in the winery. “The better the quality of the fruit, the less you have to interfere with the natural winemaking process,” says Wood.

    Given the small yields, there’s also little room for error, meaning producers place immense focus on quality. “You’re never going to compete in the middle [in a small region] – you’ve got to aim for the top,” says Curly Flat owner Jeni Kolkka. “Big wineries try to do things as fast as possible, but we’re in no rush,” adds Troy Walsh, owner and winemaker at Attwoods. “We don’t use commercial yeasts; everything is hand-harvested and everything is bottled here, so we bottle only when we’re ready, not when a big truck arrives.” That’s why, when you do see a Macedon Ranges product on a restaurant wine list, it’s usually towards the pointy end.

    Come for the wine, stay for the food

    pouring sauce onto a dish at Lake HouseDaylesford
    Dining at Lake House Daylesford is a treat. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    If wine is the quiet achiever of the Macedon Ranges, then food is its not-so-secret weapon. In fact, the area has more hatted restaurants than any other region in Victoria. A pioneer of the area’s gourmet food movement is region cheerleader Alla Wolf-Tasker, culinary icon and founder of Daylesford’s Lake House.

    For more than three decades, Wolf-Tasker has championed local producers and helped define what regional fine dining can look like in Australia. Her influence is palpable, not just in the two-hatted Lake House kitchen, but in the broader ethos of the region’s dining scene, as a wave of high-quality restaurants have followed her lead to become true destination diners.

    the Midnight Starling restaurant in Kyneton Ridge Estate Winery
    The hatted Midnight Starling restaurant is located in Kyneton. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    It’s easy to eat well, whether at other hatted restaurants, such as Midnight Starling in the quaint town of Kyneton, or at the wineries themselves, like Le Bouchon at Attwoods, where Walsh is inspired by his time working in France in both his food offering and winemaking.

    The beauty of dining and wine touring in the Macedon Ranges is that it feels intimate and unhurried. You’re likely to meet the winemaker, hear about the trials of the latest vintage firsthand, and taste wines that never make it to city shelves. And that’s worth getting out of the city for – even if it is just an hour down the road.

    dishes on the menu at Midnight Starling
    Delicate dishes on the menu at Midnight Starling. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    A traveller’s checklist

    Staying there

    the accommodation at Cleveland Estate, Macedon Ranges
    Stay at the Cleveland Estate. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Soak up vineyard views from Cleveland Estate near Lancefield, embrace retro charm at Kyneton Springs Motel or indulge in lakeside luxury at the Lake House.

    Eating there

    Enjoy a four-course menu at the one-hatted Surly Goat in Hepburn Springs, Japanese-inspired fare at Kuzu in Woodend or unpretentious fine dining at Mount Monument, which also has a sculpture park.

    Drinking there

    wine tasting at PassingClouds Winery, Macedon Ranges
    A tasting at Passing Clouds Winery. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Settle in for a tasting at Boomtown in Castlemaine, sample local drops at the cosy Woodend Cellar & Bar or wine-hop around the many cellar doors, such as Passing Clouds.

    the Boomtown Winery and Cellar Bar signage
    Boomtown Winery and Cellar Bar. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Playing there

    a scenic river in Castlemaine
    Idyllic scenes at Castlemaine. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)

    Wander through the seasonal splendour of Forest Glade Gardens, hike to the summit of Hanging Rock, or stroll around the tranquil Sanatorium Lake.

    purple flowers hanging from a tree
    Purple flowers hanging from a tree. (Image: Chloe Smith Photography)